Yesterday's lessons
by esama
Summary: Ten years has passed and things have changed. Yet Kaiba Seto is still the same and Mutou Yugi is still standing, even if on broken legs. Slash.
1. I chapter

**Yesterday's lessons**

**I chapter**

"The damage?" Seto asked with tight voice, his icy eyes taking in the devastation that had been just day a go one of his warehouses. The signs of the fire could be seen anywhere - the metal walls were painted by black and the paint of the door had gone from white to sickly shade of burnt sienna. He didn't have to be expert to see that most of the paint had boiled during the fire.

The worker leafed through the notebook in his hand. "The warehouse itself isn't as bad state as it seems like. Since it was mostly made of metal, it's unlikely that it will collapse, but some of the support beams have bent and the windows were mostly shattered when the fires were put out. Some repair and the warehouse will be usable. .."

"I'm not interested about the warehouse - I can have more build any time I want," Seto threw a frown at the worker. "How much of the product we lost?"

The worked coughed awkwardly and leafed through his book again. "As you know, sir, in that warehouse there was mostly DC3s, waiting for to be shipped out. At least half of them are burned beyond repair and the rest have suffered bad smoke damage and are no doubt unusable as well," the man frowned a little. "It also seems that the smoke got to the warehouses five and seven as well, so the products in those warehouses have also suffered fire damage…"

Seto's frown deepened into a scowl as his eyes skipped to the warehouses at the each side of the burned one. The flames had licked the walls of the other warehouses so there was probably some heat damage as well. "Just great," he murmured, striding up to the burned doors of the warehouse number six. "And the cause of the fire?" he asked.

"The specialist aren't quite sure yet, but it seems like it was malfunction in the air ventilation system," the employee quickly followed the president of the Kaiba Corporation. "They suspect that a bird might've flown into the air vents and caused some sort of disturbance, but they aren't hundred percent positive."

"A bird, hah!" the president snorted coldly, folding his hands while surveying the damage. It wasn't as bad as he had thought. Most of the stacks holding cardboard boxes were still undamaged and standing, but around the walls he could see how the boxes had caught fire. The sight of the ruined game devices sticking out was somehow very gruesome. Thankfully the sprinkler system had protected the stacks in the middle of the warehouse - before the system had gone down due to the fire anyway.

"Right," Seto murmured to himself. "I want everything that hasn't been touched by fire moved away from this warehouse and to the warehouses five and seven. Get some people to check them for damages - what ever is usable you keep and what seems unusable you send back to the factory so that it can be disassembled. Maybe the idiots there can make something useful out of the parts."

"Yes sir, but…" the worker looked at him worriedly. "You can't possibly be thinking about selling the damaged games, sir? The smoke and the heat, sir, it's unlikely -"

"If they still work, we will sell them," Seto glared at the man for even thinking about proceeding otherwise. "Making these games costs money, money that is only returned to the company once the games are sold. This stupid fire might've ruined the complete worth of the merchandise but not all of it. If the games work, they will be sold - even if we have to lower the price, they will still be sold," he turned his eyes to the merchandise and glared at the signs of the fire. "We need all the profit we can get to repair this damage."

"Yes… sir," the worker murmured. "But the likelihood that any store will be willing to buy damaged games…"

"We'll sell them to the stores that will. Local stores, small stores - it doesn't even have to be a game store. Just as long as they will buy them with as high price as we can hope to get at this point," the president turned to leave the warehouse, sick with the sight already. "Get me a list of the local game stores and other places that might be willing to buy games of the warehouse six. Electronic stores will do as well, even repair shops. Anything usable."

"Sir, I have a list with some of the local game stores in it," the worker quickly intercepted, pulling out a ruffled sheet of paper from the notebook. "I've marked the stores where the products from warehouse six were supposed to go before the fire - all the local stores are in it along with the stores of the nearby towns…"

Seto snatched the paper and quickly looked through them. Some of them were big stores, others were smaller ones - there were even few department stores in it. And there, among the sum of small game stores, was a familiar name. The Turtle game shop.

Stilling his walking, the president frowned at the name. Where had he heard that name before? Then it hit him. _'That's the store of Mutou Yugi's grandfather?'_ For some reason the thought shocked him slightly. He hadn't heard a sound from the King of Games in almost a decade - not since they had all been brats, living and breathing from Duel Monsters. _'I have that shrimp's grandfather's store on my lists? My company actually supplies that store? And I didn't know?'_

It wasn't that strange though. The company supplied over half thousand game stores all over the world. He didn't bother keeping track with them - he had workers to do it for him after all. But it was still a surprise that this store was on the lists and he didn't know. _'Interesting to see that the store is still up and running. That old man though… shouldn't he be dead by now?'_

"Contact all the stores and shops in Domino to see if they will be willing to buy the damaged games - and have someone cover the story in the press. The damaged games will be going out to the market a bit earlier than meant so that should bring the price up a little bit," Seto mused. Then an idea brewed in his head - along with unhealthy amount of curiosity. "But this store…" he pointed the Turtle game store, "don't contact this one."

"Sir?" the worker asked with surprise. "The Turtle game store has been a loyal customer for many years -"

"Yes, I'm sure it has been. With those people, I can't see any other way for it to be," Seto rolled his eyes, remembering his old rival from way back. He handed the paper back to the worker before turning to leave. "Keep the store in the lists as usual, but don't contact it about this matter."

"May I inquire why, sir?" the worker asked with confusion.

"I intend to contact the store myself," Seto answered. He threw a glare at the dump struck worker over his shoulder. "Get to it! I don't pay you for standing around, asking questions."

Mildly satisfied by the way the worker hurried away, the president of the Kaiba Corp turned his attention ahead. _'Mutou Yugi hm…'_ he thought, as the image of the short King of Games flashed somewhere in the privacy of his own mind. The ridiculously wide eyes that had eternal look of wonder and surprise in them, that stupid haircut and dye, the laughable clothing his rival had used to wear… The greatest duellist in the world. _'How many years has it been since I last heard about him? Seven? Eight? Probably even more; I can't quite recall any meetings between us after high school… that was over a decade ago…'_

Suddenly, unexplainably, he wanted to find out how his former rival was doing. _'He probably won't even be at the shop. It's still probably run by that old man, what ever his name was… but I guess it doesn't hurt to take a look. If nothing else, then I'll get to see how they present my games and gaming stations in the store…'_

x

The Turtle game store was silent as Yugi concentrated onto the small figurine he was carefully painting. It was a tiny thing made with as much detail as he could make - as perfect miniature version of the Magician of Black Chaos as he could make. Currently Yugi was very carefully painting a tiny silver buckle in the magician's thigh with silver paint.

It was a quiet hour. It was too late for early window shoppers and too early for students. Most of his customers were students in the local schools and before the school hours would be over, his shop wouldn't have too many visitors. He didn't mind it too much. He had ways of entertaining himself during the slow hours - like figurine making, which had became a dear hobby some years ago.

Glancing up whilst reaching for more paint, the shopkeeper glanced at the lines of finished figurines. Smile tugged at the corner of his lips at the sight of Dark Magician, Dark Magician Girl, Celtic Guardian, Gaia the Fierce Knight and all other monsters that had been once upon a time treasured companions. Over them towered the slightly bigger miniatures of the three gods - it had taken him weeks to make them, but he was quite satisfied with them.

_'What an otaku-ish hobby,'_ he mused to himself while dipping the tiny brush in paint and turning to the latest figurine again. He didn't care much about how otaku-ish - and therefore nerdish - the hobby was, though. He had lot of free time in his hands these days, and making the figures gave him a certain feeling of accomplishment. Especially if they came out as well as he wanted them to.

Hearing the bell ringing in the shop, Yugi glanced up. _'A customer at this time of the day?'_ he questioned with confusion, but lowered the brush and the figure carefully to the table. After closing the lid of the silver paint, he glanced around for his cane, quickly finding it from beside the table. Using it and the table's edge as leverage, he slowly stood up. Then, using the cane as support, he limped towards the door separating the backroom from the shop. _'This is a strange time to get customers. Maybe a student skipping school?'_

The shop seemed empty when he stepped behind the counter. Trying to see to the between of the shelves of the shop, he frowned. Was there someone there? Yes, there was. He could see a shadow between the shelves - and unsurprisingly the customer was apparently looking through the selection of the Kaiba Corp's hologram games. They were very popular these days.

"Hello?" Yugi asked carefully, stepping nearer to the counter to see better. "May I help you somehow?"

There was a moment of silence before the customer stepped from between the shelves. Yugi's eyes widened when he saw that it wasn't some student, but a man. A very tall man dressed into a long coat with hint of white collar and black tie peaking from the collar. Then Yugi saw the man's face, the slightly lengthy brown hair and the cold blue eyes.

"Kaiba?" the short shopkeeper asked with shock. He quickly raked his eyes up and down the man's lengthy frame before taking the man's face in again. Yeah, it was definitely Kaiba Seto. The man hadn't changed much since their teenage years - still tall, still pretty much expressionless, and still icy-eyed. He even had the metallic brief case with him - and even his haircut was the same. "Kaiba Seto," Yugi shook his head with wonder while carefully hiding the cane and leaning onto the counter for support. "How long has it been? Nine years? Ten? What brings you to my humble shop?"

"Nothing less than a disaster, I assure you," the tall man strode up to the counter. "I see you haven't changed much - still a shrimp. You've taken over for your grandfather in the shop, huh?"

Yugi shrugged, pushing aside the twinge of pain he felt at the words. "Grandpa died over four years ago," he answered, trying to sound as nonchalant as possible and hoping that Kaiba wouldn't see the cane. "I've been taking care of the shop since."

The tall man looked at him thoughtfully, folding his hands. "I half expected you to be touring the world or something. Running after Duel Monster's tournaments. It seemed to be all you did back when we were young."

Yugi lowered his eyes for a moment, hoping that his face wouldn't betray his bitterness. _'Touring the world… hah.'_ He faked a smile - smile he faked these quite often. "Well, I was young. I guess I settled down," he mused. When the taller man raised his eyebrows with surprise, the shorter man laughed. "Not that I'm married or have kids or anything like that. I mean settled down to living as a modest shopkeeper."

"Uhhuh," the taller man frowned slightly. Then he looked away. "Well, as wonderful as it is to see this… humble place," the man gave the game shop a slightly disdainful look. "I came here on business."

"Oh really?" Yugi smiled an honestly amused smile this time. _'Good to see that this man's mannerism hasn't changed one bit,'_ he mused. "And what sort of business would drive you from your lofty, erm, corporation to wander amongst peasants such as myself?" he asked with a grin.

Kaiba threw an annoyed look at him. Then the man rolled his eyes. "There was an accident at the corporation. One of my warehouses burned down and whilst we managed to secure some of the merchandise, the heat and smoke damage will make it impossible to sell them in your usual fashion."

"You mean asking your usual price," Yugi rolled his eyes. Kaiba Corp's products weren't cheap - for a damn good reason though. The hologram gaming systems were the best out there, so the man had the right to ask for good prices, but still… at times the prices could give little shop owners like him big headaches. "So you want to sell damaged goods with low prices?"

"They're not actually damaged. The boxes might've suffered some damage but I won't be selling broken games," Kaiba threw a glare at him. "I will not sell defective products - not even to a place like this."

Yugi's amused smile gained a slightly strained quality. "Yes, I imagine that my little shop is not quite up to your usual criteria," he muttered, before pointing the man accusingly. "And I didn't mean to insult you or say that you would sell faulty goods. That would probably be harmful for your company's reputation, so it's obviously not something you'd do. I just said it to make sure I understood the situation properly."

"Right," the taller man rolled his eyes. "In any case. I'm going to try and sell all the products that are usable to the local shops with low prices. Yours was on the list of local shops we supply, so I decided to drop by myself," the man grimaced and spoke the next words as if they tasted foul in his mouth. "For old times' sake."

Yugi couldn't help but laugh at that. He ignored the annoyed look Kaiba sent to his direction, marvelling how seeing a familiar face could make him laugh so quickly. He couldn't even quite remember the last time he had honestly laughed. "Why do I feel that Mokuba is somehow behind this?" he murmured amusedly while leaning his elbows against the counter. While trying to get his legs to more comfortable position, he missed the way Kaiba frowned and turned away sharply. "Well then, what are you selling?" Yugi asked. "I have most of your products here already."

"Yes, I noticed," Kaiba coughed, nodding towards the shelves he had been looking at previously. "Very well stacked I might say. Popular?"

"Does your ego really need another boost?" Yugi chuckled. "Yes, highly popular. Most customers that come here are after hologram games. And every second person comes here asking when DC3 will come out. You have lot of people holding their breaths, waiting for the new console."

Kaiba gave a slightly satisfied smirk before nodding. "That's quite fitting. It's DC3s I need to sell."

"You burned down a warehouse of DC3?" Yugi raised his head with surprise. The gaming world was waiting for the new Disk Console with drool practically pouring from their mouths - heck, Yugi himself was anticipating it too. The game was promised to come out in the end of the month, but it had been almost two years worth of wait until now. If there had been a single console out there right now, people would've paid millions of yens to get their hands to it. "Damn, what a waste."

"Tell me about it," the Kaiba Corp' CEO sighed. "Annoys the hell out of me; I lost over twenty thousand consoles in that damn fire. And about ten thousand suffered smoke and heat damage. Half of them will be recycled and half - the ones in best condition - I will sell to shops like this one."

Yugi raised his eyebrows. "Only five thousand, hm?" he asked curiously. Then he narrowed his eyes. "Do you mean to say that you're going to release these damaged consoles ahead of schedule?"

"Yes," the taller man nodded.

The shopkeeper couldn't help but be impressed with that. If it had been after the release date, Kaiba wouldn't have gotten anything out of the damaged consoles. But since it was before… Right now the gaming masses were screaming for the DC3s. They would no doubt pay well even for damaged consoles. And this worked well as a publicity stunt too. Five thousand consoles, released solely in Domino and ahead of schedule. The word of that would travel fast and far.

"Not bad," Yugi nodded to himself. His mind was already running a mile a second with what he could do with those consoles. If he could get his hands on just few of them, he could auction them off in the Turtle game store's website - it would get him nice little profit… "Not bad at all. To how many stores are you going to offer them?" he asked from the taller man.

"All the stores in Domino that will be willing to buy," Kaiba shrugged. "And maybe to one or two websites."

Yugi frowned. _'Hasn't he realised the auction value these things will have?'_ he mused. '_If he would start auctioning them on Kaiba Corp's website, he could get some profit for himself as well…'_ Yugi smiled slightly. "I'll buy. How many would you be willing to sell to me and what's the price?" he asked. _'I want at least few consoles before he realises that by auctioning them he would get much more out of them.'_

"To your store?" Kaiba glanced at the store. "How many regular customers does this place have?"

"Around two, three hundred I think," Yugi mused. "Mostly high school and college students."

"Then I'll sell you two hundred. That would be… three million yen," the man said almost flippantly.

"You expect me to pay fifteen thousand yen per a console?" Yugi asked with raised eyebrows. "Hey, these are damaged consoles we're talking about, and you're asking that sort of price?"

"The usual price is around fifty thousand yen," Kaiba gave him a flat look. "It's a seventy percent discount. Don't expect me to settle for any less than that. The products might be damaged, but it's the boxes that are damaged, not the consoles. They're still quite unusable."

The shorter male frowned. _'Well, when he puts it that way…'_ he mused. "Well, three million yen is still too much. My shop isn't that wealthy. I'll, hm… I'll buy fifty consoles. That'd be about seven hundred and fifty thousand yen, right?"

"Yeah, that's about right. Fifty it is then," Kaiba nodded, setting the metallic briefcase to the counter. With well adjusted movements, he opened the locks of the suitcase and brought out official looking documents. "You don't mind if we'll have this deal in written word, right?" the man asked, taking out a pen as well.

"Not at all - and why I am not surprised you carry these sorts of things with you?" Yugi chuckled. _'Better for me though. The sooner it is made official, the better. Once it's written down, he can't go back on his words.'_ With mild amusement, the shopkeeper watched how the Kaiba Corp's president filled in the document before handing it to him to be signed. After glancing through the document, Yugi added his signature underneath Kaiba's. "There we go. Nice and official."

"Hm," Kaiba just nodded, hiding the document in his briefcase again. As he locked the thing again, he gave Yugi a look that maybe was curious one - with Kaiba it was hard to tell. "Do you think you can sell them?"

"Of course I can sell them," Yugi snorted, giving the man slightly amused look. "Why do I have a feeling that you don't deal with your marketing too much? People have been expecting the third Disk Console as if it was the second coming! I'll auction the consoles of in the internet, and I think I'll get nice bit of profit out of it too."

Kaiba gave him a surprised look. "My god," he then said almost sarcastically. "You actually have a business sense, Yugi."

Yugi smiled though he felt a twinge of awkwardness at the words. When he had taken over the Game Store, he had been forced to auction lot of old things off so that he could get some money. He had needed it to get the shop up and running again after being closed down for months. At that time he had been more or less forced to become a successful salesman - it was either that or bankruptcy. "I guess I do have some sense," the shopkeeper admitted.

"I never knew you had any," Kaiba gave him a darkly amused look. "You've always seemed to lack most sense - common sense especially."

"Oh shut it," Yugi chuckled wondering how he could be amused by things that could've previously made him feel insult. _'I guess I've grown thicker skin since grandpa died…'_ he mused. _'It's strangely nice to talk with Kaiba again. Maybe it's because of a familiar face, but… it's nice.'_

Kaiba gave him a thoughtful look before glancing at the clock hanging from the near by wall. "I think I should get back to the office," he then said. "Now that this business is concluded."

"In hurry to get away from me?" Yugi asked amusedly though somewhere inside him he felt a bit saddened. "Pity. It would've been fun to catch up."

"Catch up?" Kaiba asked as if he had never heard the words before.

"Yeah. You know, talk about things that have happened and how we've been doing and stuff," Yugi made a circling motion with his hand to wrap it all up in nice packet. "It's not like I don't know how you've been doing, though. I mean, in this business you can't turn around without hearing something about the great Kaiba Corporation," he chuckled. "But in the least it would be nice to pay some respect to the days gone by. Or something."

_'I just want to talk to someone I know,'_ Yugi mused silently. _'It's been too long since I've gotten the chance to talk about the past with someone who shared it.'_ Not that he'd say that aloud.

Kaiba frowned but in the same time he seemed just a little bit intrigued. "Well… I was thinking about grabbing a bite to eat before heading back. Have you had lunch yet?" he asked. "There should be some restaurants around here, right?"

"Are you asking me out for a dinner?" Yugi asked amusedly, grin spreading to his face. Underneath it he was a bit worried. Like this, leaning onto the counter, he was fine. But to go out to a restaurant would require walking - and with him walking required, among other things, a cane. And he had been sort of hoping that Kaiba wouldn't see the cane.

"Hey, you're the one who want to catch up," Kaiba threw annoyed scowl at him before looking around in the game shop. "As… humble as this abode of yours is, I think there are better places for lengthy discussions."

"Man, you sure know how to compliment someone," Yugi laughed but straightened his back. _'Well, I guess this place isn't that nice to spend time in - heck, I go to the back room every time there's no customers around… and it's not like I can hide my disability anyway. Stupid to try really.'_ He stretched his hands. "Alright, let's go grab a bite to eat. But you're paying."

"For myself yes, you can get your own bill," Kaiba snorted.

"But you're rich! My wealth is very modest," Yugi faked a hurt. "With my measly pay I can barely eat fast food. Going out to a restaurant… it would drain my wallet dry!"

"Very funny," the taller man rolled his eyes but there was something tugging at the corner of his lips - a smirk maybe. "Can we get going now?"

"Yes, yes," Yugi sighed. He hesitated for a moment before reaching for the sleek black cane with his right hand. "Could you wait for a moment whilst I fetch my jacket and wallet?" he asked.

Kaiba glanced down to the cane before looking up. "Alright," he said with strange voice. Whilst Yugi turned to visit the backroom, he could feel the other man's gaze on him. Feeling a bit self-conscious, he glanced down to his feet once he was out of the other man's sight. His leather pants reached his ankles and underneath them the mid-calve-high boots covered his feet well. There was no way the man could see his legs.

With a shake of his head, Yugi turned to get his coat. _'Stupid, of course he can't see. Stop thinking about it - stop making such a fuss about it. Just… act like normal. If you're calm and casual about it, he should be too…'_ quickly he got his knee-length coat. After checking that he had his wallet and keys, he turned to return to the shop. "Okay, I'm ready to go," he said.

The taller man was watching him closely as he limped around the counter, leaning onto the cane with every other step. "What happened to your legs?" the man then asked rather bluntly.

"Just an accident some years back," Yugi assured with a casual wave of his hand. "Nothing to worry about, I assure you."

Kaiba frowned a bit before nodding. Then the man strode past him and Yugi wasn't quite sure what to think about the act that the taller man actually held the door open for him. "I might be limping but I'm not completely useless," Yugi gave the taller man a strained look while reaching for the door and adjusting the lock so that the door lock once it would close.

"Well, I wouldn't want you falling over at the porch of your own shop," the taller man grimaced at him but there was hint of embarrassment on his face. Still, he kept the door open until Yugi stepped out. After Yugi had checked that the door was properly locked, the taller man lead him to a near by car - a very fancy and shiny car, probably newest model and everything. Thankfully Kaiba decided that one show of manners was enough and allowed Yugi to open the door by himself.

As Yugi sat down, it was a bit clumsy. If Kaiba noticed that he had to arrange his feet by his hands so that they were in comfortable positions, the man decided not to say anything about it. Once Yugi had settled the cane down beside his feet and closed the door, the taller man merely asked for nearest good restaurant. As Yugi gave the directions, he had to wonder if his disability would ruin the upcoming conversation.

x

_'What the hell happened to him?'_ Seto glanced at the rear-view mirror while backing the car from Turtle game shop's parking lot. _'Just a little accident my ass. He can't move either of his legs properly - heck the right one barely bends at all…'_

When he had seen the shopkeeper, he had thought immediately that Mutou Yugi hadn't changed much. Leather shirt underneath a white button-up shirt, leather pants, that stupid collar thing around his neck and the same ridiculous hairdo even… nothing had changed. Or so it seemed. And then the man - who still the short shrimp he had been back when they had still been in high school - pulled out a cane. And a heavy limp. And acted like it was nothing.

_'Nothing to worry about he says. Well if it has been years since what-ever-happened, I guess it's a bit too late to worry - not that I'd worry about him,'_ Seto glanced at the man sitting in the passenger's seat. _'But to me it sounded more like he didn't want to talk about it. Well, that level of injury, I guess it makes sense… Strange that I've never heard of this. The King of Games has had injury so bad that he now walks with a cane, and I've never heard anything about it…'_

Suddenly Yugi sighed beside him. "Does it bother you that much?" he asked, reaching down and rubbing his left knee slightly. "These legs of mine."

Seto glanced at him. _'So it is both of his legs?'_ he thought. "It's not that it bothers me," he then said, turning his attention to the road again. "I just never imagined… I never heard anything about this. I should've heard something."

"I haven't been active in the gaming world for a long while," the shorter man mused, leaning back again. "At that point no one really cared that much - and even if they did, it did no good to them. I tried to keep the incident to myself, not many know about it really."

Seto threw a glance at him. _'I guess that makes sense. He never was all that interested about the fame part of our lives - that was what the low-lives and useless players were after. I still should've heard something.'_ He frowned. "When did it happen?" he asked.

Yugi glanced at him before looking away. "About four years ago," he said.

_'Four years… didn't he say that his grandfather passed away four years ago?'_ The taller man hit the breaks as they ran into lights. "The same time your grandfather died?"

"Very same," Yugi nodded. "It was a car accident - some drunkard behind a wheel ran right into our car… Grandpa died and I survived with some injuries." The shorter man made a dismissing motion with his hand. "It's ancient history now. I got back to my feet and moved on. It's nothing special really."

"He died and you're limping, I'd say that it's something special," Seto frowned. _'How can he be so nonchalant about it?'_

"Maybe," the other man admitted before shaking his head. "I don't really want to talk about it. There are better things to talk about, really."

"Like what?" Seto asked, driving his car out of the lights now that they had changed. "Where was I supposed to turn after the crossing?"

"Left, the restaurant will be in the right side of that street," Yugi motioned at another crossing coming up. "And there are loads of things we could talk about. Like, hm… What did you do after high school? Did you go to a college? With the Kaiba Corp there, you probably didn't really need to get an occupation, but…"

"I did go to a college. Domino University, I studied technology related things mostly - things I can use at the corporation," Seto answered. "Also took some courses on business and such. I might've been running the company since I was sixteen, but most people didn't take me as seriously as they should have before I got an official degree."

"Heh," the shorter male chuckled at his words. "As seriously as they should've. That's… interesting way of wording it."

"It's the truth," the driver rolled his eyes before glancing at the other man. Then he looked up as he saw the restaurant. "How about you?" he asked while driving to the parking lot. "What did you do after high school?"

"I went to college too," Yugi nodded. "Can't quite remember what I studied specifically. I was mostly in hurry to get it done with so that I could move onto other things."

"And then you settled down?" Seto asked while manoeuvring the car to a parking space. After turning the engine off, he turned to look at the other man. "I guess that your, hm, settling down had something to do with the injury?"

"There was few years between college and the accident, but yeah," Yugi frowned slightly while unbuckling the seat belt and opening the door. Seto took note of how he took support of the cane and of the car's door as he sat up - and he still looked like he could've easily fallen over. "With legs like this, you can't exactly run around," the shorter male grinned to him.

Quickly getting out of the car himself, Seto waited until Yugi had closed the door before locking the car. "You're surprisingly casual about it all."

"Well, I don't plan to spend my entire life mourning over my legs," Yugi made a dismissing motion with his hand. "I'm alive and kicking and that's really all that matters at the moment." As they headed towards the restaurant, the shorter male looked up to the taller one. "So. What did you do after college?"

"Concentrated onto Kaiba Corp mostly," Seto said with a shake of his head. "When you're a president of a company, the company will most likely take most of your time. There was never really any need to do anything else, though. I'm content with my corporation."

"With the amount of money you make it's no wonder," Yugi chuckled. Because Seto reached the door of the restaurant first, he held it open for the limping man. Yugi gave him a look. "You're making me believe that you somehow became a gentleman when I wasn't looking."

"Hah," the taller man said. "Very funny. Just get inside, shrimp."

"Hmph," Yugi smiled at him but stepped inside.

Seto followed him with a frown, wondering why he was being so courteous with the other man. _'It's not like he actually needs help, he doesn't seem that helpless…'_ he glanced at the other man as Yugi slowly limped into the restaurant. _'Or actually… he does. I wonder how bad the injury really was…'_

They found themselves a table. Since the restaurant wasn't as high class as some of the ones Seto had visited, they weren't immediately brought drinks or anything of that sort - and the menu's were actually sitting on the table when they sat down.

"So, how is Mokuba doing?" Yugi asked after slowly sitting down. He reached for the menus and after handing one of them to Seto he opened the one he had gotten for himself. "I haven't seen him in the media lately."

Seto frowned at the words. _'Mokuba…'_ he thought with twinge of regret. "I… Mokuba and I haven't talked in a while," he then said. "As far as I know he's doing well - he's working as a freelancer in the gaming industry. You probably have some games in your store that he has been part of - though these days, he doesn't work with Kaiba Corp…"

Yugi looked almost shocked. "You… haven't talked in a while?" he repeated. "You were inseparable back when we were young - heck, Mokuba worshiped the ground you waked on! What happened?"

"He grew up," Seto shook his head. _'And realised that I'm not as good person as he tried to believe I was.'_ Turning his attention to the many, the president of the Kaiba Corp tried not to feel the stinging pain he felt every time he thought about his little brother. "In a way it's good," he murmured. "When he was following me like a shadow, he didn't have much independence. Now he's his own person."

"You don't really believe that, do you?" Yugi asked. When Seto didn't answer, the shorter man sighed. "I guess no one can survive through a decade without failing relationships," he murmured, glancing over the menu one final time before putting it aside. "Being adult sucks."

Seto glanced up. "What eloquent way of putting it," he murmured sarcastically while turning his eyes back to the menu. "And what relationships of yours failed?"

"All of them really," Yugi said with a shrug. "Right after high school Anzu left for America and Ryou left to Britain - both to study but they ended up staying there. Jonouchi ran away with Kujaku Mai when I was in middle of college, and during college Honda started dating Shizuka. Sometime after I graduated, they moved away too - Honda got job somewhere or something. I don't even know where Otogi is these days… Excluding some random phone calls, I haven't really talked to any of them in… years."

Seto looked up with surprise. "What the hell?" he then asked, looking at the shorter man suspiciously. "I thought you were going to be friends until death do you part of some other corny crap like that."

"They grew up too," Yugi answered with a shrug, staring at the table. "It's all nice and dandy to talk about eternal friendships when you're young, but the chances of them lasting eternally are never really set in stone. People grow and change as the time goes by… we grew apart I guess."

As the waitress came to take their orders, Seto had sudden image of what it might've been like when Yugi had the accident. Had there been anyone there to help him when his grandfather died? After giving his order, Seto turned his eyes to his former rival and took in his face. Yugi's eyes were still as big and bright as they had been when they had been young, but now… there were lines around them. At first it had looked like Yugi hadn't aged at all in the last ten years but now Seto could see that he had. His former rival's face was still young, but his eyes were old.

"It's strange," Yugi murmured, looking at the other man thoughtfully. "To see a familiar face after so long, it's strange. I see you all the time in the television, but still…"

"Yeah," Seto agreed. Someone he knew - not as a business associate or as a worker, but as a past acquaintance or maybe even more than mere acquaintance… it was strange. And in the same time it was… comforting. _'What a stupid and weak notion, but still…'_

"It's nice too, though. Being in the company of someone I actually know," Yugi chuckled and the look in his eyes was a bit sad. "Let's talk about happier things."

"Like what?" Seto asked because he wasn't sure if he could think of anything… happy to talk about. He didn't give so called happy things all that much worth.

"I don't know. Tell me about the DC3," Yugi suggested.

Seto thought about it and then nodded. The game console was a safe subject to talk about. It would give them enough to talk about for the entire duration of the meal. _'Strange, though. I know everything about the console so it's a bit useless to talk about it… and yet…'_

He talked, and Yugi talked back until they had lengthy conversation going on about he console and its qualities and its games and everything else. As they talked Seto found himself relaxing for the first time in a long while. And by the look on Yugi's face, the other man seemed to enjoy the conversation as well. _'Yeah,'_ Seto eventually admitted, though only in his own mind. _'This is… nice.'_

They had started and finished their lunch before they even realised. After ward they still talked for a moment before getting up to leave, still talking about one particularly popular game that had been recently released for DC2. The conversation lasted until they reached the game shop.

"It was good seeing you, Kaiba," Yugi said while opening the car door.

"I guess there are worse people to spend time with than you," Seto admitted and watched how the other started get up to his feet. The taller man felt somehow awkward about just sitting there and watching. It felt like he was supposed to help the other man somehow but in the same time he knew that trying would just seem stupid. The fact that Yugi had been dealing with the injury for years and that he was probably adjusted to it already still hadn't quite sunk in.

"I'd say that I'd like a repeat of this, but I doubt you have the time for that sort of thing," Yugi laughed once he was finally on his feet. He was leaning onto the cane again and by the looks of it keeping himself standing straight only because of it. "But… if you feel like it…" he shrugged. "I'm at the game shop most of the time. All the time really - I live just upstairs after all."

_'Open invitation,'_ Seto thought with slight surprise. "I'll keep that in mind," he nodded. He raked his eyes over the other man one last time. "I'll make sure that you'll get the consoles tomorrow, day after tomorrow in the latest" he then said. "I'll leave now. Try not to fall over," he said as way of saying farewell. For some reason he almost felt reassured when Yugi just laughed at the words.

x

What to say, what to say... hmm... I actually can't think of much to say about this. Seto and Yugi centric drama story, will develop eventually into slash. My attemp of spreading Rivalshipping love to the world - there just isn't enough of it around.


	2. II chapter

**II chapter**

Spreading the morning paper to his breakfast table, Seto knew somewhere in his mind that he was trying to make the table seem smaller. It would've been easier to hold the big paper in his hands, but these days he always spreaded to the table. That way he didn't have to look at the table - big and empty table of his big, empty dining room. Table where he ate his meals alone.

But the past reasons for stupid actions and whatever crutches he had build for himself to overcome the absence of his brother didn't matter now. He was looking at the article that had been splattered right to the first page of the game section of the paper. "Fire at Kaiba Corp," said a top title but the text underneath was bigger - and written in flashy red so that it was impossible to miss. "5000 DC3s released ahead of schedule!"

Seto knew what the article said - he had read it long before the paper had even been printed. He had arranged things with the local media so that when they did articles about his company, he got to glance through them before hand - and suggest possible changes if something wasn't to his liking. It had cost a bit, this little privilege of controlling his own fame, but it was well worth it.

The article detailed the fire and then went to explain that because of these unfortunate events, five thousand games - which despite being in the heart of the fire were still in good condition - would be released early. The article then listed all the stores that would have the consoles and how many consoles they had. And among the list there was the Turtle game shop.

Leaning back in his seat Seto stifled a slight smirk. It was interesting. Yugi had been the first to see the auction possibilities of the console, but definitely not the last one. About all the stores that had a website of some sort were going to auction the consoles. Yugi had been the first to start since he had been the first to have the business made official, so right now he was doing quite well with the auction. Though it looked like the King of Games wasn't willing to go over hundred thousand for some reason - when it got close to hundred thousand, he closed the bidding and started another one with another console - that made him the cheapest of all the console auctions - and word of it was spreading in the net.

_'He's surprisingly good with business,'_ Seto mused, turning his attention to the laptop. He had the Turtle game shop's webpage open and there, right in side of the front page was the tally about the auction. Two consoles had already been sold - first with eighty nine thousand and the second one with ninety four thousand yen. The third console's bidding was only at forty thousand at the moment, but there was still some time for people to bid.

_'The other shops are trying to get the bidding as high as possible - at one shop I hear it's going around three hundred thousand at the moment,'_ the Kaiba Corp's president frowned. _If they keep that up, people will turn to auctioneers like Yugi - who know where to draw limit. Yugi isn't getting overboard with the bidding but he is still getting nice profit - while still keeping it within semi-reasonable prices… he's not getting too greedy with it.'_

Though associating Yugi Mutou with greediness was utterly and completely impossible, it was rather hard for Seto to accept that the short man, his former rival, actually had a business sense like this. And Yugi had thought to use auction immediately - selling the games in his shop had never occurred to him.

"If he'll keep the prices under hundred thousand and over eighty, he should get about… well over three million yen's worth of profit," Seto nodded with approval while reaching for his coffee. "Not bad at all for such a small shop."

Even if the Turtle game store hadn't been doing well, this sort of thing would keep it going for a long while. Not that Seto believed that the game shop hadn't been doing well - he had seen the place close enough to see that it was doing well. It was stacked with expensive games and consoles and by the looks of it, people had been buying. Also, despite being small, the shop had been in good condition - well cleaned and well arranged.

_'Might be that because of those legs of his, Yugi just pays more time cleaning up the shop than most people would because he probably has to do it slowly,'_ Seto mused. _'With that sort of limp, I doubt he's all that excited about going anywhere either. Especially if he lives above the shop…'_

Frown appeared to his face. He had out of curiosity researched the accident. There had been an article about it, but it was a very small one and no names had been mentioned. Just; "Old man killed and young man taken to hospital due to a car crash - driver of the other car questioned." That was about it. It was somehow unsettling that the article was so small and seemingly so insignificant. Seto knew that if he had gotten into accident like that, it would've been in dozens of papers - and probably right in the front page. Yugi had been one of the greatest celebrities and heroes of Domino at a time and his article was barely visible in the page.

_'But I guess that's the way he wanted it,'_ Seto mused. He could understand the reasons behind Yugi's need for privacy, sometimes he wanted the same thing, but… It was still disturbing. _'I wonder just how many people even know about it?'_ he sipped the coffee before grimacing and setting the cup down. The coffee had gotten cold. _'I wonder, has he even told those so called friends of his…'_

x

Yugi hummed to himself while looking over the webpage of his store at the computer that was in the storage room. The bidding was doing well better than he had thought - though by glancing the other websites, he could see that with bit of advertising it could've done even better. But he wasn't in as much of a hurry to get money. As it was he was getting way more from the consoles than he had paid. _'If this keeps up I'll get more than I know what to do with. It will be very annoying to write this all down once I need to do taxes…'_

"Oh well, I'll think about it when it gets to that," he mused while clicking to another webpage. The news about the Kaiba Corp fire had already spreaded through the internet like, well, wild fire. And so had the news about the five thousand damaged consoles. Some of the biggest websites concentrating onto gaming were keeping tabs on the shops that sold them - and about the auctions. Yugi's own auction had gained some internet publicity because he limited the auction a bit and had already sold two consoles of the fifty he had bought. Others were still waiting for the bids to rise higher.

_'People can be so greedy. To what do they need that money for?'_ Yugi shook his head. _'Well, bigger shops bigger expenses. Mine's a small one so I don't need astronomically high profits….'_

Turning away from the computer, Yugi stretched his hands. Then, with a small chuckle, he reached for his cane and more or less dragged himself to his feet. _'Finally I have some use for the website. I made them because I had nothing better to do - it took some time and research to learn how to, but it was fun… But until now they haven't been all that useful… and no one has ever visited them.'_

With a huff he sat down to the chair by the table where he usually worked with the miniatures. The Magician of Black Chaos was long since ready and Yugi had no idea what to make next. _'I've made almost all humanoid monsters of my old decks along with some of the beasts…'_ he looked at the line of figurines and frowned. _'I'm sort of getting tired with my own monsters, I've been doing them so much…'_ after a moment of thinking, he chuckled. _'I think I caught a bug from Kaiba or something. I want to make the Blue Eyes White Dragon. But I would have to use lot of silver paint on that…'_ Looking up to the Winged Dragon of Ra, Yugi grimaced. _'That guy was expensive enough, with all the gold paint it took…'_

After a moment of wondering about it, he sighed. Then he reached for pencil and paper to start to sketch what he would model. _'I wonder what Kaiba is doing anyway. I didn't even think to ask if he's still obsessed with the Blue Eyes,'_ the shopkeeper chuckled. _'He doesn't wear a white coat anymore. Hmm…'_ his amusement faded as he looked back to the way they had used to be. _'So young, so impressive… those really were the days…'_

After sketching the dragon's head, Yugi started to realise that he didn't remember the White Dragon well enough to draw it out of memory. Instead of getting up and going to the computer to search the internet for reference, he pushed the sketch away. _'Strange to think that the Kaiba brothers aren't talking. They were inseparable back when we were young. Mokuba was always running after his big brother and Kaiba was always looking after Mokuba. Mokuba was pretty much the only person Kaiba really cared about… I wonder why they aren't talking anymore…'_

He didn't really believe what Kaiba had said. It would take more than just growing up for Mokuba to break ties with his brother. And the look in Kaiba's eyes, even tough the man had tried not to show it… it had been regretful. _'Maybe they've had a fight…'_ Yugi mused sadly, leaning his chin to his palm. _'I wonder which is more painful. Relationship that fails because of a fight or the drifting apart that happened with my friendships…'_

Brushing his hand through his blonde bangs, he smiled a strained smile. All his friends had moved on and he had been left behind. And now it was more or less impossible for him to move on. _'Well, I have the shop. I have a home, I have enough money to live comfortably… I'm fine,'_ he shook his head to push the painful thoughts away. _'A bit lonely maybe, but fine.'_

Unbidden, a memory raised it's head - one of the horrible months he had spent in the hospital, only with the other patients and the doctors as his company… But he quickly shook the thought away. He had mourned and wept enough back then. He was alive and as healthy as he could possibly be, and that was enough.

With a frown, he reached for anew paper and started to sketch again. Then he turned his mild back to the meeting itself._ 'Even if we weren't exactly friends before, it was really nice talking to Kaiba. It would be cool if we could do it again, but… I doubt he'd be interested in something like that. He's probably busy with the company all the time anyway. That workaholic…'_

x

The day had gone pretty much the way it always went in Kaiba Corp. The whispers were a new addition. Apparently none of his workers could quite understand why he had sold the games away with such low prices when their buyers, the shops, were getting such big profit from them. Why hadn't Seto auctioned the games off himself?

The president of the Kaiba Corp snorted while walking to his car. What sort of image would it give of him if he would auction damaged games, even if it was only the packages that were damaged? What sort of image would it give of his company? When he sold personally, he only sold the very best. The damaged games had been more of a donation - he had wanted to get rid of them and get at least bit of compensation from it.

The five thousand consoles they had sold prematurely were damaged and therefore they had been sold with ridiculously low price. The entire world knew this, Seto had made sure of it, made sure that the population knew his company's standing in the ordeal. So, as the shops went to auction off their games in stupidly high prices, it would be their fault if the customers would come to whine about the price not matching the console's quality. They had no right to whine about it to Kaiba Corp.

_'I wonder what Yugi would do if someone would whine about the console's quality to him after buying one from his website?'_ Searching for his Keys, the president of the Kaiba Corp snorted. _'He'd probably apologise and give the whiner their money back.'_

Opening his car's locks with the remote, Seto opened the car's door and sat down. Before turning the engine on, he leaned back and sighed. _'Why am I always in such a hurry to get back home?'_ he wondered with slight annoyance. _'I'll just end up working… so being at home isn't that different from being at the office…'_

Turning his eyes to the Kaiba Corp's office building, the man frowned. The building was impressive; tall and imposing. Tallest building in Domino. He still heard about workers who, upon coming to work for him for the first time, were actually a bit scared of the building… And these days his home wasn't all that different from his work. Maybe the building wasn't as tall as his office building, but it was as cold and impersonal - just as uninviting. Whatever life there had ever seemed to be at the mansion had faded away when Mokuba had packed his bags and left…

_'Funny how I kept thinking that Mokuba was becoming dependant of me when I seem to be the one missing his presence,'_ the man snorted, leaning his head back against the softened headrest of the seat. _'When did I turn out like this?'_ he questioned, brushing his hand through his hair with a sigh. _'There are times when I don't even want to go to the mansion because it's so damn empty these days. When did I start to care about things like that?'_

Probably when he had realised that there was no one around him that he actually trusted. No one whose company he enjoyed.

As waited for his composure to come back, his mind turned to Mutou Yugi again. _'He lives atop of the Turtle game store… his apartment is probably a bit small. Nothing like my three-floor mansion really, but… I wonder if it's more comfortable living alone in small apartment. That way there would be less empty space…'_

He still couldn't quite wrap his mind around the concept of Mutou Yugi being alone. In the past there had never been a single time he had seen Yugi without company. Either he had been with that blonde mutt or the brunette bimbo or who-ever that third guy was - and then there was that white-haired brat, Bakura… Yugi had never really been by himself. It was strange to think that the five of them weren't friends anymore. They had seemed such a tight knit group back when they had been younger.

_'I guess even idiots grow up,'_ Seto mused, remembering what Yugi had said. _'Being adult sucks indeed.'_

As his stomach reminded him of its existence -and of the fact that he hadn't eaten much during lunch, unbidden a thought came to him. _'I wonder if Yugi has eaten dinner yet.' _Blinking sharply at the thought, Seto thought about it for a moment. Then, as he couldn't think of anything he could lose, he reached to turn the engine on and decided to take the invitation Yugi had given him. _'The store should still be open… I think.'_

When he drove to the parking lot in front of the Turtle game store, there were still lights on in the store. Getting out of the car and locking the door, he strode up to the door and tried it. Still open. _'He keeps the store open pretty late,'_ the president of the Kaiba Corp wondered and stepped inside.

He was mildly surprised to see Yugi standing in the middle of the shop with a mop. The short man turned to look at him with surprise, almost falling over because of the sudden movement. Yugi managed to catch his weight on the mop before falling though, but it looked like he was standing only barely. "Kaiba?" the storekeeper asked with surprise.

"You're going to fall over," Seto pointed out the obvious. The shorter man's standing looked shaky at best.

"No I'm not. I'm just a bit, uh, unbalanced," Yugi gave him an awkward grin before straightening himself and leaning onto the mop. "What brings you here at this hour? Another disaster?"

Seto gave him a flat look only to get a light laughter as an answer. _'This guy… really isn't intimidated by me at all. Slightest show of annoyance will have my workers jumping and this guy just laughs at me.'_ He shook his head with slight annoyance and wonder. "Dinner actually."

"Your dinner has something to do with me?" Yugi raised his eyebrows with amusement, leaning his cheek against the mop handle.

"No you idiot," Seto rolled his eyes. When Yugi only grinned at him, he was almost relieved that the shorter male hadn't taken insult. Almost. "I'm thinking about getting some dinner and I wondered if you'd like to accompany me."

"Now you're asking me for a dinner?" Yugi's amusement seemed to have almost delighted quality in it, which made Seto from snarling something insulting at him. "I'd love to get something to eat. You're buying."

"No way, you'll pay for your own food," the taller man glared at the shorter one, who just laughed in answer.

"Alright, alright," the shopkeeper chuckled, glancing at the water bucket he had used while mopping the floor. "I need to take these away first…" he frowned slightly.

Realising that Yugi, with his legs being what they were, would probably need to make two trips and take the mop and the bucket separately, Seto stepped forward and took the bucket. Keeping safe distance between it and himself, he glanced at the shorter male. "Where am I supposed to take this?"

For a moment Yugi seemed dumbstruck before he smiled with gratitude. "There's bathroom in the backroom," he said, turning and limping towards the counter, using the mob as his support. Seto followed him, wondering if Yugi really couldn't walk any faster. _'Well, it's not his fault,'_ he mused silently and endured the slow pace.

The backroom surprised him greatly. He had been expecting it to be storage room-like with shelves filled with boxes and things like that. But instead it looked more like some sort of workroom. There were several tables there, one serving as computer table, other having some random bits of broken technology in it and one… Seto's eyes widened. "Are those Duel Monsters figurines?" he asked, immediately recognising the familiar shapes of the duel monsters. Realising that they were all monsters from Yugi's own deck - and that there was paint and other supplies on the table - he turned to look at the shorter male. "Did you make those?"

"It's a hobby," Yugi shrugged looking a bit awkward. "When you can't use your legs too well, you find something to do with your hands." He coughed and grinned lopsidedly. "The bathroom is there, if you could pour the water away, I'd be thankful."

"Right," Seto nodded and quickly did as asked. The shop's bathroom was small but surprisingly clean. As he poured the water down the drain, he couldn't help but notice that there was a medicine cupboard in the bathroom. The door was slightly ajar and Seto could easily see the lines of medicine bottles stacked inside neatly. And with the migraine he had, Seto was no stranger to most of the medicine there - painkillers.

Shaking his head he turned his eyes away from the cupboard, trying not to wonder what sort of pain Yugi had to be to have that much medicine ready. "Where am I supposed to leave this bucket?" Seto asked.

"Just leave it there, I'll sort it when I get back home," Yugi assured in the other room. As Seto did as asked and then stepped out o the bathroom, he saw that Yugi had taken the mop away and was currently pulling a jacket on. After getting his arms to the jacket sleeves, Yugi grasped the handle of his black cane. "I'm ready to go," the shorter male said, after checking his pockets.

"Wait, I want to take a closer look at those first," Seto murmured, walking up to the table to inspect the figurines. They were surprisingly well made - and the detailing was really astonishing. With the Magician of Black Chaos, Yugi had even detailed the various belts and buckles. "These are really good," he murmured, glancing at the other man who seemed a bit sheepish. "How long have you been making these?"

"Few years," Yugi shrugged, limping up to the table. "They were pretty horrible in the beginning, but I've gotten better since then."

"I'd say," Seto nodded, taking the Dark Magician figurine to his hand. "Ever thought of selling these?"

"Sometimes," Yugi shrugged. "But I probably won't. I'm making them to pass the time, not for profit or anything."

"With this sort of detailing, you could get nice bit of money out of these," Seto mused. "Or if you'd make moulds out of these for production…"

"Yeah, but I won't," Yugi smiled, taking the figurine from his hands and examining it thoughtfully. "I don't need more money and I only made them for myself. Besides these are already painted - making moulds of them might ruin them."

"Hmm… probably," Seto agreed, glancing at the shorter man, wondering if Yugi would be willing to make a figurine if he asked - and paid for it. He decided not to ask. "Let's go then," he said instead, turning to head to back to the shop. Lowering the figurine Yugi nodded and limped after him.

x

_'Bit surprising that he'd come to ask me for a dinner like that,'_ Yugi mused while Kaiba steered the car out f the parking lot. _'Not that I'm complaining since this is pretty much what I wanted but still… it's not like Kaiba to just ask people for dinner like that. Last time he did it because I whined.'_ He glanced at the stoic taller male. _'Maybe he's lonely too.'_ After moment of thinking about it, Yugi chuckled and turned his eyes away. _'Kaiba Seto, lonely? What a weird thought.'_

"What's so funny?" Kaiba asked without looking at him.

"You asking me out for a dinner," Yugi chuckled, leaning his head back. "I'm not complaining or anything but ten years ago you wouldn't have asked. Not even for a lunch no matter how much I'd whine."

"True," the other man agreed. "But things have changed since then," he glanced at Yugi before turning his icy eyes back to the road, "more than I realised."

"No one stays the same always," Yugi mused, closing his eyes and pretending that Kaiba didn't mean his legs. "Mokuba grew and changed, my friends grew and changed and whether we've noticed or not, you and me probably have grown and changed too. It's all part of life." He opened one eye and glanced at the other man. "So, was the publicity to your liking?"

"Hm?" Kaiba gave him an inquiring look.

"With the five thousand consoles. It's all over the papers and internet," Yugi settled more comfortably against the backrest. "I noticed that Kaiba Corp has been very adamant about making sure that people know that the consoles were damaged and sold with low-price."

"I wanted to make sure that the people who bought these consoles from retailers with insane prices won't have any reason to come to whine to my corporation. In case the consoles don't work as they should," the taller man gave him a strict look. "Though they should."

"Yes, yes," Yugi chuckled. "You're making us dealers look bad, though."

"I didn't ask you to start the auction," Kaiba said calmly.

The shorter male laughed openly at that. "Alright, alright. I've let my customers know that the consoles are not in mint condition so that they don't expect too much. Though each console I've sold so far seems to have pleased the buyers," Yugi stretched his hands with a smile. "No complaints as of yet."

"That's good to hear," Kaiba nodded. "Are you going to keep any of them?"

"Nah," Yugi shook his head. "Once the official release will kick in I'll get one for the shop that the customers can test it out, but that's about it. Rest will be merchandise."

"You don't play?" Kaiba asked with surprise.

"Of course I do," Yugi chuckled. "But you see, I own my very own game shop. Why should I need to buy games when I can just play them in my shop? I'm my best customer. And worst one since I never really pay."

"Go figure."

Yugi smiled. _'Sometimes it makes me feel awfully childish though. I never moved on, never grew out of the gaming phase. I've been playing games for so long that I've never thought of really doing anything else. My job and even my hobbies are all game related. There really… was no other course of life for me, was there? Unlike Anzu who had her dancing, Jonouchi and Honda who fell in love or Ryou who had interest archaeology… I never grew out of games.'_

He turned to look out of the window. _'I love games… but sometimes it's painful. Originally I started to play games because I really had nothing else to do - and I needed something to occupy my mind. Back before school. I had no friends - heck, I was bullied even then… games were my escape from reality really. In the beginning I was playing them and waiting for time when I wouldn't need to entertain myself… time when I would have something else to do. But now, decades later, I'm still playing games.'_

"You make games," he mused out loud to the other man. "Why? I mean, originally you were just concentrating onto Duel Monsters and such - the theme parks and the Duel Disk… you made them both to support Duel Monsters. But now you're making games, the Disk Consoles and their games - among with other things… why?"

Kaiba gave him a confused look before turning thoughtful. Then he shrugged. "Logical way of proceeding. Duel Monsters was popular for few years but it was natural for it to start to eventually fade. Games come and go with their popularity, and when Duel Monster's lost it's popularity the sells of the Duel Disk's started to drop…" the man shook his head and flexed his shoulders as if trying to get some weight to shift off. "I couldn't just let the company die, so Disk Console system was developed from the Duel Disk's hologram technology."

"So you… evolved from Duel Disk to Disk Consoles?" Yugi mused thoughtfully. _'I'm stuck in games, but he's a step ahead of me. He's making them. But… he's stuck too. Kind of.'_ He hummed and watched the people walking down the street outside. "Where are we going exactly?" he then asked with confusion. Not to the same restaurant they had visited the last time, that was for sure. They had passed the right crossings ages ago.

"The food in that last place tasted like shit. I'm going to eat in place where I know the food is edible," Kaiba answered.

Yugi chuckled. "You have too high tastes," he mused. Maybe the food in the restaurant they had visited the last time hadn't been first class, but it had been edible - by Yugi's standards anyway. "I hope it isn't any five-star restaurant or anything like that. I'm not dressed properly."

"It isn't, but it serves good food," Kaiba shrugged. "We're almost there."

"Good. I'm starving," Yugi smiled.

x

Just like always, Seto's preferred restaurant served excellent food. While they ate and talked about game consoles and hologram games, Seto would himself wondering about how he had started to eat out a quite bit after Mokuba had moved out. _'During lunch and usually for dinner I come here,'_ he mused while Yugi waved for the waitress to bring him something to drink. _'It's… a bit annoying to come here to eat alone, but it beats the hell out of eating alone at home.'_

"Or maybe I should take something stronger," Yugi mused suddenly, catching the taller man's attention. "It's been a… while since I've had a glass to drink."

"Yugi?" Seto asked with a surprise. "You? Drink? As in alcohol?"

"Hey, I'm an adult too you know. I'm almost twenty eight," Yugi gave him an amused look. "Of course I've drank alcohol. The moment I became old enough grandpa took me out to drink, actually." His smile wavered for a moment before he turned his eyes away. Then he grinned. "Would you mind if I had a glass?"

Seto stared at him for a moment, his brain unable to process what the other was saying. Then he shook a head. "Its fine," he assured before getting a suspicious thought. "Unless you're really light weight and get drunk from one glass?" Drunken Yugi might've been amusing sight but it wasn't something he wanted to handle.

Yugi shook his head with a chuckle and ordered. Seto wasn't all that surprised about his choice of drink - cider. Seto himself preferred brandy and occasionally whiskey, but Yugi was the sort of guy who probably enjoyed sweet drinks. "You said you haven't had a drink in a while," Seto prodded curiously.

"Yeah. It's not that I drank a lot. Grandpa just used to take a bottle of beer on Fridays so it became a habit for me to have a bottle of cider," Yugi shook his head while pushing his now empty plate away so that he could lean onto the table. "But after the accident I stopped that habit… alcohol doesn't mix well with painkillers," he chuckled softly.

"Do you need to take painkillers often?" Seto asked, remembering the medicine cabinet.

"Not so much anymore," Yugi shrugged and looked up as the waitress brought his cider. He thanked her while taking the glass and then took a sip as she gathered their empty plates to be taken away. Once she left, Yugi spoke again. "In the beginning it was pretty horrible - sometimes so bad that nothing short of morphine made the pain go away, but… I healed. Eventually. I still get random bouts of, ah, aching now and then, but it's nothing I can't handle."

Seto frowned a little at the words. _'Nothing he can't handle,'_ he repeated silently while leaning his elbows against the table. _'To live a life where one has to handle pain. Maybe even continuous pain… I never imagined that sort of life for Yugi.'_ He coughed softly. "Does it hurt to walk?" he asked then, making the other look up with surprise. "Your walking looks a bit painful," the taller man pointed the obvious.

"No it… it doesn't really hurt. It's not comfortable or easy for me - without a cane I'd probably fall over the moment I got to my feet," Yugi murmured softly before smiling a strange sad yet somehow proud smile. "But at least I'm standing." Then he shook his head and took another sip of the cider. He chuckled with amusement. "I've almost forgotten what this tastes like. Not as good as I remember."

Seto smirked slightly at the shorter man before frowning. _'At least he's standing? He says it as if it's a great accomplishment to stand… well, by the looks of his walking, it really is. The damage was no doubt severe…'_ he raked his eyes over of the other man's slim form. _'But when he's sitting down like this, you wouldn't even be able to tell that something's wrong.'_

"You know, I was supposed to have my first glass to drink with my friends. Jonouchi and Honda had it all planned out when we were finishing high school. We were supposed to hold this joined birthday party once all of us were of age so that we could drink together for the first time," Yugi murmured, staring at the glass. "But… none of them were here then. So grandpa took me out for a drink instead."

Seto stared at him silently for a moment, wondering how such a stupid thing could make someone sad. Then he shook his head. "I had my first glass to drink when I was about twelve," he said, smirking at the shocked look Yugi gave him. "It was wine," he clarified.

"You like wine?" Yugi liked suspicious. "You don't seem like type to drink wine."

"No, I like brandy actually. I hate wine," the taller male answered, before raising his eyebrows. "And what type of person drinks wine?"

"Pegasus," Yugi said solemnly.

"Ah," Seto frowned slightly at the memory of the silver haired man and what he had done. "That was hectic time," he mused. Waking up from six months worth of coma to find out that Mokuba was gone and that Pegasus was trying to steal his company… "Do you miss him?" he suddenly wanted to know. "That other personality of yours? The one that put me into coma?"

Yugi looked surprised for a moment before smiling sadly. "That's a… difficult question to answer," he mused, leaning back in his chair. "In a way I do miss him, but in a way I don't. It's kinda like missing a season. You might miss summer when it's winter or winter when it's summer, but in the end they will come when their due time is…" he smiled thoughtfully. "When I die, I will see him again. Because of that, I don't really miss him. Does that make any sense?"

"Not one bit," Seto said, looking at the other man with a look of suspicion. _'Yeah, now I remember why I thought Yugi was insane back when we were young. He sprouts out stuff like this.'_

His words were awarded with a light laughter. "Do you miss him?" Yugi suddenly asked. When Seto just gave him a confused look, he explained. "My other self was your rival. You were constantly at each other's throats. You must miss duelling him."

Seto frowned. "I grew out of that," he said after moment of thinking. "Besides, it was always you who was my rival, not him."

"I wasn't the one who duelled you," Yugi pointed out softly.

"Well, you were the one who existed. It wasn't just about the duels or Duel Monsters. You annoyed the heck out of me just by being who you are," the taller man snorted, leaning back in his chair and folding his hands. "Always so carefree, always laughing and so incredibly, foolishly naïve. You even trusted me when you had no reason to - you did it too many times. Even if he was the one who duelled me, it was you who were my rival because you were nothing like me."

Yugi seemed shocked for a moment. Then, apparently not knowing what to say, he turned his attention to his cider and took a sip.

"But that's all in the past now," Seto shook his head closing his eyes with mild irritation. "Rivals… hah. These days my rivals are other game companies and the so called inventors labouring to copy my hologram technology. Duel Monsters… is nothing but a memory these days. Relic of days gone by. It's the time of videogames and hologram games these days. Who cares about cards…?"

"These days people collect and trade hologram chips. Quite different from the stuff our generation used to collect. I can still remember things like Digi-pets and Capsule Monsters… It really makes me feel old," Yugi murmured with a sad smile.

"It wasn't even that long ago," Seto muttered with an annoyed shake of his head. "The gaming world is just advancing really quickly these days."

"Yeah, and whose fault is that?" Yugi grinned suddenly. "If you hadn't invented hologram technology, videogames would probably be the pinnacle of gaming technology. But noo… you have to invent fancy hologram gimmicks."

"It was your other personality who inspired me to invent hologram technology. Blame him," the other man said calmly, making Yugi chuckle. Smirking slightly, Seto looked at the other man thoughtfully. "There are times when I wanted to try and revive Duel Monsters, you know," he then said. "It wouldn't even be that difficult. I already have all the holograms of all the monsters in Duel Monsters - they're easy to produce… but I never did."

"Why not?" Yugi asked curiously.

"I could never figure out the best way to do it. Game players want more than battles and duels these days - they want a story line and game play, not just battling," Seto shook his head. "If I'd make a game of Duel Monsters, making it the way it was to us… no one would be interested in it. It was interesting to us because we had, and I loathe using this word, adventures while we played. Without that…"

"Yeah, the duelling would be flat," Yugi mused and then laughed. "You know, I probably would've never gotten interested about Duel Monsters if you hadn't been pushing it. You and Pegasus and then Malik… I didn't see it like that back then, but having enemies made it all interesting. Exciting."

"Hmm…" Seto nodded. He had built a liking and affection towards Duel Monsters because it had been strictly prohibited in his stepfather's house - out of rebellion. Without that circumstance… he probably would've never gotten as serious as he had. "Strange how our likes and dislikes are morphed by the situation."

Yugi gave him a strange look before lowering his eyes. "Yeah," he snorted amusedly. The short then turned into a small chuckle, which he tried to smother by taking another sip of the cider.

"Don't tell me you're getting drunk already," Seto gave the smaller man a flat look.

"No, no, I just remembered something that right now… is kind of funny. Never mind," Yugi shook his head and took a bigger swallow of the cider. Then, as he lowered the glass, he chuckled again. "You know, this is a situation I never thought to be possible when I was young. I mean, you and me having dinner and drinking…?" he shook his head. "Back when this was the last thing I thought would happen. Right after hell freezing over."

Seto looked at him for a moment before frowning. "Is it that bad?"

"Nah, it's kinda nice," Yugi smiled, closing his eyes contently. "Nicer than I could've imagined." He peaked one eye open, looking at the other man. "And you must think so too since you came by today."

Seto shifted uncomfortably and then shrugged. "There are worse company I could keep," he muttered.

Yugi awarded him with a casual smile. "Sure beats having no company at all," the shorter male said before taking another sip of his cider. "Having a drink with an old friend. Yep, this beats the hell out of sitting home alone."

Seto closed his eyes in agreement. _'Yeah. It does.'_

x

Alrighty. Story continues. Rather slowly though. I guess I should warn you guys about that - this story is pretty slow one. There won't be any enormous dramatic plot, no enemies or epic fights and no heroes - no magic either. This is a drama/romance story, therefore there will only be human relationships. Lots of talking and such. I wanted to write as realistic story as I could so it might get boring for some.

Oh, and I'll be trying to update this every Saturday. Well, it's Saturday my time, it might still be late Friday for you or something debedning on where you live. Thank you guys lots about the reviews. It makes me happy to see any YugixSeto story so well liked.


	3. III chapter

**III chapter**

The phone was ringing and Seto was seriously considering not answering it. He had finally managed to relax after another annoying day at work - it had taken few sips of brandy, but he was relaxed. In his favourite living room, by the fireplace, just enjoying the moment… It didn't happen often and the ringing of the phone was a disturbance. And he knew that if he would answer the phone it would just get worse. It would be easy to pretend that he hadn't heard the phone ringing. He could call back later and pretend that he hadn't been in the room or that the phone had been on silent or that he had forgotten it in the car or something like that.

But as the thing kept on ringing - and getting to his nerves - he finally turned his eyes to it. Then, with annoyed sigh, he reached for it to check whose number it was. If it was someone annoying he could just throw the phone into the fire and wonder about the consequences later. Seto frowned at the phone. It was a strange number - not one he had saved to the phone's memory.

After moment of thinking about it, Seto answered the call. It could be someone important - and he could throw the phone to the fire if it was someone annoying and then they could just listen to the flames for all he cared.

Before he could say anything to the phone, a familiar voice spoke "Sorry for not calling in earlier! The meeting dragged on and on… I'm just getting to the car and I'll be home in half an hour - or do you need me to get something from the store?"

Seto blinked with surprise. "Mokuba?" he then blurted out with confusion. It was his brother's voce - and he had no idea what the other was talking about. Mokuba hadn't been home for over a year now.

"Wait, you're not Miho," the voice turned sharper as the speaker concentrated. "Seto?" the voice sharpened even more. "I didn't mean to call you. Shit, I changed the number but I still have you on the damn speed dial… I'm hanging up --"

"Wait," Seto barked at the phone. "You're still with that… that woman?" he asked, frown coming to his face. "It's been a year and you still haven't realised what a --"

"Don't you dare say anything against her, you bastard," Mokuba's voice was an angry hiss and with a bang of anger and pain Seto realised that Mokuba still hadn't changed his mind. "She's ten times better person than I think you ever were and I will not listen to you call her names!"

Seto scowled, sitting up straighter in the couch. "It's nothing more than she deserves! She's nothing but a gold-digger - and five years older than you at that!" he frowned. "Are you still paying off her debts?" he asked cuttingly.

"I'm not listening to this," Mokuba snapped at him. "You have no right say anything about my life anymore - you lost that right the moment you raised your hand against me! So keep your attention on your own business - the corporation has been all you cared about for years now!"

"That's not true," Seto growled. "I just want the best for you."

"Yeah, right! Nothing says love quite like two stitches to fix a cut lip!" Mokuba laughed bitterly. "Don't try to pretend you care - at best you care about what reputation I might bring to the corporation. But you shouldn't worry about that anymore, right? I'm not with your precious company anymore. And soon you won't even have to worry about me tainting your precious family name."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Seto asked with slightly worried frown.

"Miho and I will get married soon - and I will take her family name," Mokuba snorted and Seto could hear a bang as if car door had been closed. "I always hated the name Kaiba anyway." With that said, the younger man hung up, leaving Seto staring at the phone with shock.

_'He's getting married with that woman?'_ He asked with a shock. _'And taking HER name? Doesn't he realise what commotion that will rise?! My brother, taking a woman's name to be his last name! And THAT woman's name at that! She just after my brother's money and fame - needs him to pay off her family's debts. And Mokuba still hasn't realised what a witch she truly is… She's half decade older than him too.'_

Squeezing the phone tightly in his hand, Seto snarled. _'She drove us apart and he never even realised it…'_ Then, in a bout of frustration, he threw the phone at the fireplace, watching how it shattered against the mantle. None of the pieces reached the fire but the sight of them scattering around the front of the fireplace was somehow satisfying - but only minutely. And after a moment he got annoyed with the sight of them.

Ignoring the glass of brandy, Seto sat up angrily and stalked out of the room. _'I need some air.'_

-

Yugi hummed along with the soft music coming from the radio while waiting for the water to boil for his tea. Leaning his elbows onto the hand rests of his chair, he looked towards the kitchen window. It was already dark outside, but he could still see the light of the street lamps and the passing cars. More often than not, the light coming from cars was accompanied by noise as the drivers listened to their music at a volume so loud that it made the cars shake.

_'Were people like that when I was that age?'_ he mused. _'When I got my driver's licence, did fresh drivers play their music that loud too?'_ Not that he had driven in a long while. His licence had been disqualified the moment it had become apparent that he would never be able to walk properly.

That night there were more noisy cars driving around than usual. Friday nights were usually noisy. _'Friday night, huh? I'd be having a cider right now if grandpa was still alive… but instead I'm making tea.'_ Yugi chuckled softly, leaning his head back and staring up to the ceiling. _'I think we built that habit because I never had any place to go to Friday nights. Most of the people my age would've gone out to party with their friends no doubt… I never did. But in the end it didn't matter that much. Fridays were still enjoyable in their own right…'_ he glanced at the empty kitchen, his smile fading. _'Nothing like they are these days.'_

The water boiled and soon the water boiler clicked. Turning his attention to it, Yugi slipped his hands off the hand rests of the chair and to the wheels. Grasping a hold of the handrim, he began turning the wheels. After so many years of doing it, his hands had gotten so adjusted to the pattern that it happened without a thought as he easily manoeuvred the wheelchair around the kitchen table and to the counter.

Taking a teapot and a cup from the cupboard under the counter, he placed them onto the counter. Soon he was mixing himself a cup of green tea. Once the cup was ready, he settled it between his thighs to make sure it wouldn't fall over, and then pushed the wheelchair to the kitchen table where the day's newspaper was waiting for him. _'Bit strange to read the newspaper in the evening,'_ he chuckled while placing the tea cup onto the table. _'But… at least it gives me something to do with evenings. Most people might watch TV, but I got enough of that at the hospital.'_

Scanning the front page thoughtfully, Yugi chuckled a little at the mention of Kaiba Corp. _'They're still talking about the damaged consoles, hm? And about the fire…'_ curiously he leafed the page until he reached the article and then started to read it. _'Oh? Kaiba has started fixing the warehouse, hm? Seems like they won't hold off the release. I was a bit worried that they would, with the fire and everything… I should step up the auction a bit or I won't get to sell all the consoles before the actual release date comes by…'_

Shaking his head Yugi leafed back to the first page and begun reading the paper in order. Though he wasn't interested in the politics and the celebrities and the athletes that seemed to take most of the paper with their presence, it was still nice to keep up with the happenings of the world. Even if he could never affect them or be part of them, knowing the events happening in Japan was somehow… connecting. Made him feel more like a part of the society where he lived.

_'Strange notion but when you don't have any social relationships - or any worth mentioning - something like this can become surprisingly important…'_ Yugi chuckled. _'A bit pathetic really…'_

A buzzing sound rang over the soothing music coming from the radio. Looking up, Yugi was at first confused about the noise. Then he realised what it was. The door bell. _'That thing still works?'_ he asked with shock before realising the absurdity and sadness of the thought. He couldn't even remember the last time someone had rang his door bell.

Leaving the paper and the tea Yugi turned the wheelchair around and then rolled it out of the kitchen, down the hall and to the small, open elevator that sat beside the stairs. After grabbing a blanket from a nearby drawer, he flipped the chair around with ease, then backed into the elevator before hitting the button that made it descend to the first floor. As it lowered him to the first floor, he spread the blanket over his legs.

_'I'm still doing this,'_ he grimaced but smoothed the blanket so that it looked as natural as possible. _'I'll deal with it later.' _Shaking his head Yugi looked up as the elevator stopped. Then he rolled out, opened the door of the room that had once been a storage room. After clicking the lights on, he pushed the chair through the back room and to the shadowed store. Even though it was dark, he could clearly see who it was ringing the door bell on the other side of the locked door.

"Kaiba?" Yugi murmured aloud. _'What is he doing here at this hour…?'_ he wondered while propelling the chair up to the door and unlocking it. "Your visits are getting later and later," he pointed out, looking up to the man. _'Woah, from this angle he looks really tall…'_ he mused.

"Wheelchair?" Kaiba asked with visible shock.

"Yes, it's a wheelchair," Yugi nodded, his amused smile slightly patronising. "My legs get pretty tired after being at the shop all day, mostly on my feet… so I usually spend the rest of the day on wheels." Grabbing a hold of the handrims he easily backed away from the door so that the other man could step inside. "What are you doing here this late? Don't tell me you want late evening snack this time."

The taller man gave him a slightly flat look but mostly he looked troubled. "I was in the neighbourhood," he murmured awkwardly, his eyes skimming over Yugi's chair. "You know, seeing you of all people in a wheelchair is rather… unsettling."

Yugi chuckled, relieved that Kaiba hadn't noticed what he was trying to hide. "You don't know the half of it," he murmured before tilting his head to the side. "You were in the neighbourhood? This isn't exactly your neighbourhood, isn't? If I remember correctly, you live a long long way from here. In a mansion if I recall correctly."

"I was out driving." Kaiba shook his head. "Can I come inside?"

"Yeah, of course. See that the door locks," Yugi nodded, turning the wheelchair around. "I just made some tea, if you'd like some."

Kaiba made a noncommittal noise while shutting the door. After checking that it had locked, the man turned around and followed Yugi out of the store and to the backroom. "How are you going to get to the second floor in that thing?" he then asked, eying the wheelchair with suspicion.

"There's an elevator here," Yugi said, pushing into the small room where the elevator was. He pushed the ajar door completely open to show the small elevator inside. "I had it installed before I was released from the hospital - cost me more than I could really afford, but… I had no choice but to get it at the time."

Kaiba stared at the elevator for a while before turning his eyes to him. "You couldn't walk back then? At all?" he asked.

"Not at the time. It took lot of physiotherapy and such to get me back to my feet. I'm still not too good with stairs so I use the elevator all the time," Yugi murmured, flipping the chair around and backing into the elevator. Then he looked up. "Are you going to get in or not?"

"Will that small thing handle the weight of both of us?" the taller man asked suspiciously.

"Unless you weight more than five hundred kilos, yes," Yugi chuckled. "It might be small, but it's not weak. Come on, get in."

Grudgingly Kaiba stepped beside the chair, jerking with surprise when Yugi hit the button to make the elevator raise them up to the second floor. The shorter man laughed at the man's reaction. "Surely you've been in an elevator before?"

"Not in this sort of elevator," Kaiba frowned. "I've never heard of elevators in two-story houses. Seems a bit… ridiculous."

"From my point of view, it's anything but ridiculous," Yugi shook his head. "For me it's a necessity." He stretched his hands before settling them on the handrims again. "Other than from the guys who installed this thing, you're only other person who has actually been on this lift. Isn't that amusing?"

"Absolutely hilarious," Kaiba said flatly.

Yugi chuckled. _'This guy's responses are so blunt that it's just funny,'_ he mused and looked up as the elevator halted. As Kaiba stepped aside, Yugi propelled the chair out of the elevator. "Could you take your shoes off?" he asked while making his way through the corridor and towards the kitchen. "I'm not all that fond of cleaning so I try to keep the mess to a minimum in the second floor. You can leave your coat on the rack."

"Right," Kaiba murmured and quickly undressed his shoes. After leaving his coat to the hall, he followed Yugi to the kitchen. "You don't have too many chairs in here, huh?" he pointed out, seeing that there was only two chairs in the kitchen and that one of them had been set aside.

"This is the only chair I really use up here," Yugi patted the wheelchair's armrest. "Other than the couches in the living room that is." He glanced up to the other man. "Now, would you like some tea? It's just plain green tea though."

"I don't really like tea," Kaiba said while taking seat. "You wouldn't happen to have anything else?"

"Other than milk, juice and water, not really," Yugi shook his head.

"Then I'm fine without anything," the taller man said, making a dismissing motion with his hand. Then, as Yugi rolled his way to the table to fold the newspaper out of the way, Kaiba looked around. "Your house is smaller than I thought."

"Gee, thanks," Yugi smiled at the words and placed the paper aside. "It might be no mansion but… it's big enough for me," he then said. "Maybe even a bit too big. There are rooms here I never really use."

"You settle for little," Kaiba mused.

"This is the house where I grew up. This is all I really know - and really need," Yugi shook his head. "There's only so much space a person needs really." Reaching for his tea, the shorter man looked at the taller one thoughtfully. "Did you really come to visit me just because you were in the neighbourhood?" he then asked. "Because it's pretty late."

"It's not even eight," Kaiba shook his head.

"It's still rather late for visiting," Yugi leaned back on his chair and took a sip of his cooling tea. He looked at the other man for a moment before shaking his head. Kaiba's eyes looked strange. "And your eyes are pretty dark. Makes me think that something is wrong." He could remember that look from back when they had been young. _'Kaiba got that look to his eyes when ever he was threatened.'_

The taller man was quiet for a moment before shaking his head. "Mokuba called me accidentally just some time ago. It made me… frustrated."

Yugi raised his eyebrows. "What he said, or…?"

"Hmm…" the taller man frowned. "We fought." Kaiba was quiet for a moment before coughing. "Just like we fought just before he left."

"So it wasn't just that he grew up, huh?" Yugi asked quietly, lowering the tea cup to the hand rest of his wheelchair. "Tell me," he urged and only smiled when the taller man shot a suspicious look at him. "Hey now. To whom would I tell your secrets?" Yugi asked amusedly. "I'm lonely and miserable!"

Kaiba snorted at the words before shaking his head and looking away. "About year and half ago Mokuba started to date this older woman. About our age, Nosa-something Miho I think was her name. She was the reason why we fought and why Mokuba moved away."

"Miho?" Yugi frowned with confusion, wondering why that name sounded familiar. _'Nosa… Miho…? Wait, could it be…'_ he looked up. "Nosaka Miho?" he asked.

"Yeah. I think that's it," Kaiba shot him a surprised look. "You know her?"

"You should too, she was in our class when we were in high school," Yugi chuckled. "Honda had big crush on her at one point. Sweet girl if I remember correctly. That quiet and shy type."

Kaiba narrowed his eyes. "Oh really," he asked cuttingly. "Didn't seem too quiet and shy to me when I met her," he snorted and looked away. "I don't know how she and Mokuba ended up dating - they had been going out for a while before I found out. I still can't understand what Mokuba sees in her. She's only after his money anyway."

Yugi blinked with surprise. _'Well it's not like I ever actually knew her, but that doesn't sound like her,'_ he frowned. "How did you figure that out?" he asked carefully.

"She has debts. Her parents had a corporation that went bankrupt and she inherited the debts from them," Kaiba shook his head angrily. "She's only using Mokuba to pay off the debts. That bitch… and now Mokuba is actually going to marry that woman! Even if she wasn't just using him, she's too old for him!"

Surprised Yugi could only stare at the other man. It had been a long while since he had heard Kaiba being so passionate. But then the words sank in and Yugi's surprise cooled down. "And… you didn't consider that maybe she might honestly love Mokuba? That your brother might love her?" he asked quietly. "And isn't Mokuba old enough to make decisions for himself? He's, what, twenty two now?"

Kaiba just frowned before snorting. "Love my ass," he murmured before leaning back in his chair with annoyed sigh. Then, after moment of silence, the annoyance started to slowly melt away into look of dismay. "He could've picked someone better for himself. Someone worthy of him. Someone of his own age at least!"

Yugi sighed. _'So they basically fought over Miho and then Mokuba ran away. That if nothing else should be the proof of what he feels for her - and if she's still with him despite the fact that he's no doubt disconnected from Kaiba's fortune… But I doubt Kaiba sees it like that. He has never been too good at understanding the matters of the heart.'_

He lowered his eyes to the blanket covering his legs. _'But then again, who am I to say right or wrong in this sort of situation? I've never been in romantic relationship - nor have I ever had siblings.'_ He shook his head. "They're getting married?" he then asked.

"According to Mokuba," Kaiba murmured, running his hands through his hair. "He's even going to take her name. Nosaka Mokuba… ridiculous."

"Rhymy," Yugi mused with a smile, earning a glare from the other man. "Alright, I'm sorry," he sighed and leaned back in the chair, trying to shift into more comfortable position. "But if you try to stop the marriage or something like that, you might be just standing in the way of Mokuba's happiness, you know."

"Like he could ever be happy with that woman," the taller man growled, shaking his head. "She'll just milk him until all her debts are paid and then she'll no doubt throw him aside. We'll see how happy he'll be then."

_'Dead set on that opinion, huh?'_ Yugi sighed. "I guess supporting the marriage is out of question for you, then?"

"Supporting the marriage? I'll never do that," Kaiba snarled, looking away. "That woman is ruining Mokuba's life… even if Mokuba stupidly allows it, I'm not going to give my approval to that." Then he turned to look at Yugi sharply, opening his mouth to say something before stopping, his mouth closing and his eyes widening.

As the man's eyes skipped down Yugi realised that when he had shifted in the seat, the blanket had shifted. Before he could even try to put it back to the way it had been, Kaiba had already seen. "Your feet," the taller man's eyebrows raised high as he stared at the footrests of the wheelchair. Empty footrests. "Where are your feet?"

"Kaiba --" Yugi started to say, reaching to adjust the blanket so that it would hide the footrests again. Kaiba would have none of that. The man sat up and walked to him with two long strides, and then ripped the blanket off. It left Yugi only with white button up shirt and pair of boxers as his cover. While Yugi grimaced with embarrassment, the man stared at his legs with horror.

-

There were no feet at all. No matter how Seto blinked or how he tried to rethink it, there still were no feet. _'Amputated,'_ his mind supplied with a lag as if there was disturbance in the information feed. _'Yugi's legs, both of them… have been amputated.'_

The black boxers Yugi wore easily revealed the pale legs, entirely too short legs. The right one didn't even have a knee, only a stump and a surgery scar where the thigh was supposed to continue to a knee. The left one was a bit longer ending little under knee into similar stump. The sight was so… bizarre that Seto couldn't stop staring. It seemed impossible. Like an illusion or some cruel joke - not actually reality but still visible… yet he knew better.

"Your legs…" he spoke with shock shaken voice. "Why didn't you tell me? Why did you…" Yugi had made it seem like it was just an injury, just weak or stiff knees or something like that. Even though Seto had realised that the damage must've been severe, he had never thought that it would be this severe. "You lied to me."

Yugi stared up to him seriously before taking the blanket from his hands and spreading it over his legs again. "I didn't lie. I just didn't tell the truth," he answered with voice that he was obviously trying to keep calm while tugging the cloth tightly around his hips. "Not a very good table conversation you know."

"You should've said something," Seto glared at him.

"Well, I didn't want to," Yugi shook his head, smiling brightly - or trying to anyway. "It's not… I can still stand and walk. It takes prosthetics and a cane, but I can still walk. That's enough." His smile turned strained. "And I guess… for a while I was nice to pretend that…"

"That everything is alright?" Seto asked cuttingly, leaning onto the dinner table. Yugi threw an annoyed look at him that made his frown only darker. _'Well… I guess it's understandable. But still… he shouldn't have misled me.'_ He looked at the shorter man before allowing his frown to fade some. "How bad was it really? The accident?"

"How bad?" Yugi snorted. "My legs were pretty much crushed. I remember looking at them just before passing out - just mangled mess of skin, flesh and bones…" he grimaced. "They had to restart my heart in the ambulance - and when they were amputating the legs, I apparently almost died on the operation table. I had lost too much blood…"

Seto frowned partially at the words but mostly at the flippant tone Yugi spoke. "Don't sound so casual about it," he then growled. _'Talking about his own near death so nonchalantly…'_

"I was unconscious for all of it, I only heard about it later," Yugi shook his head. "Those things don't bother me as much as the time I spent in the hospital does. You can't imagine what it's like to wake up after surgery, numb and light-headed with the painkillers… Only to find out that your legs have been amputated and that your only living relative is no longer living. That… wasn't all that fun."

Seto grimaced. _'And with his so called friends who knows where… he was all alone there.'_

"I could tell you a hundred and one horror stories about the pain or the terror of post amputation. Or about the hell that was physiotherapy - and that was before I even started to try walking on prosthetics!" Yugi snorted before smiling. "Or maybe I should tell you about the phantom limb sensations…? But why should I? Knowing won't help you and telling you won't make it go away."

"Phantom limb sensations?" Seto asked with confusion. "What is that?"

Yugi was quiet for a moment. "It's when the amputee feels the limb or whatever part of their body that's missing - you know, as if it's still there. Like feeling as if you had hit your toe on the table's leg even though you don't even have a foot left."

"That really happens?" the taller man asked with suspicion. "To you, I mean."

"Sometimes," Yugi shook his head, reaching his hand down and rubbing his right leg through the blanket. "Sometimes it's really painful too. Sometimes when I hear loud noises, like crashing… it feels like my feet are being torn apart," he chuckled painfully. "It's annoying because painkillers don't really help with that sort of pain. It doesn't usually last long though, thankfully."

Seto looked at him for a moment before lowering his eyes. "The prosthetics, when you stand… does that hurt?"

"Hm…" Yugi leaned back in his chair. "It feels uncomfortable. Especially with this one," he patted the right leg. "Since it doesn't have a knee it's stiffer. The left leg is easer to use since it still has a knee - you don't even know how much mobility just having a knee gives. If I had both knees left, I probably wouldn't even have to use cane, but…" he shrugged. "I usually take the prosthetics off the moment I get up here. It's more comfortable to sit in the chair really."

Seto nodded, partially understanding but knowing that he could never understand it completely. Then he glanced up thoughtfully. "Can I see the prosthetics?" he asked, admitting to himself that he was actually a bit curious about what they looked like.

Yugi gave him a confused look before chuckling. "Sure," he said. With movement that Seto couldn't help but find slightly impressive, he turned the wheelchair around and then pushed it out of the kitchen. Straightening up - and for some reason feeling slightly guilty for having two healthy legs - Seto followed him out of the kitchen and to the living room. There, on a couch, lay the prosthetics along with the cane.

The prosthetics were shaped like real human legs - they even had a rubber foot that looked like human feet. Other than that, they looked a little like toys really. Coloured with white and light blue, they looked like parts of human sized doll. But the sockets for the stumps told differently.

Yugi took the longer prosthetic leg to his hand, turning it in his hands. "There are prosthetics for above-knee amputations that have knee joint but I don't like them," he said, demonstrating the stiff knee of the prosthetic. "I tried one once and I ended up falling over all the time. I like this one better, it's sturdier."

"How do these stay on?" Seto asked curiously, walking closer and taking the left foot's prosthetic to his hand.

"The sockets are a bit elastic and they're made to fit my stumps," Yugi said, turning the fake leg in his hand. "Also mine have straps here," he pointed to the inner thigh of the prosthetic. "So that I can tighten it if I need to. Usually they stay on pretty well."

"So if you fall, they won't fall off?" Seto asked, weighing the prosthetic in his hand. _'This is surprisingly light.'_

"Haven't so far," Yugi assured, placing the prosthetic down to the couch again. "Have I satisfied your curiosity?" he then asked with mild amusement.

"Yes," the taller man nodded. He was partially wanting to ask for Yugi to put the prosthetics on so that he could see, but remembering what Yugi had said he decided against it. The shorter man had been wearing the prosthetic all day, his legs were probably tired.

Sitting down to the couch, Seto gave the other man a thoughtful look. "You know, Yugi, most people grow when they age," he pointed out, tilting his head to the side. "But you just had to shrink, didn't you?"

The shorter man stared at him in shock for a moment, making Seto believe that he might've crossed the line this time. Then Yugi burst out into laughter.

-

"Oh yes, that's me, Mr Special," Yugi chuckled, wiping the tears of laughter from his eyes. He gave the taller man an amused look, his amusement only growing when he saw that the other man was fighting a smirk. "You know you can be funny at times, Kaiba."

The taller man gave him a disbelieving look before rolling his eyes. With a chuckle Yugi leaned back in his chair. _'This is a relief, though. He… reacted better than I thought he would've. He isn't… disgusted with me. Even though I'm a cripple, that doesn't seem to bother him. Heck, he even wanted to see the prosthetics, so it's obvious that he's not uncomfortable with the thought of them.'_

"How long did it take for you to, um, get back onto your feet after the accident?" Kaiba motioned at the prosthetics. "I was about two months in the hospital - mostly because I couldn't exactly come here all by myself. I didn't have the elevator yet, and I wasn't all that good with the wheelchair back then. I wouldn't have been able to manage on my own," Yugi hummed thoughtfully. "I started the physiotherapy for the use of the prosthetics while in hospital. All in all it took me about nine months before I could walk with a cane instead of using crutches," Yugi shrugged. "I still have the crutches somewhere in here, though. Just in case I need them."

Kaiba nodded thoughtfully. Then he frowned. "Your friends. Do they know?"

Yugi frowned sharply at the words and looked away. Then he snorted softly. "No. I never really got around to telling them," he mused, shaking his head. "In the beginning I kept holding it off. I told myself that I didn't want to be a bother to them - that it was nothing I couldn't handle on my own. I thought that I would tell them once the surgery scars would heal - you know, once I was a little better and there was nothing to worry about. Then I decided to wait until I had gotten through physiotherapy… then I thought that once I could walk on the prosthetics… I just kept pushing it back. I know why I did it - it's this mental process that usually happens to amputees. Fear of rejection and dependence…" he chuckled. "Eventually I had kept it to myself for so long that… telling would just be awkward."

Kaiba looked at him seriously. "If they will ever find out…"

"They will accuse me of never telling them, I know," Yugi shook his head. "But it's not exactly my fault that they weren't around. Our lives are so separate these days that… I'm not even sure how I would've reacted if they would've shown up. I didn't… want them to. I kept thinking that it would've felt like betrayal somehow."

"Coming to see you when you're hurt and in need of help? How is that betrayal?" Kaiba seemed confused.

"Because it would mean that I need to lose both my legs before they'd come around," Yugi chuckled. "The more I thought about it, the more I realised that it's probably true… and it's painful to think about it."

"Hm… I guess so."

Yugi smiled, relaxing on the chair a bit. "What are you going to do about Mokuba and the wedding?" he suddenly wanted to know.

"Huh?" The taller man seemed surprised or a moment before frowning. "I almost forgot about that," he shook his head. "I don't know. It seems a bit… less important right now."

Yugi smiled sadly. "Something more horrifying to compare your situation to, huh?" he asked. _'This sort of comparison might do him good, though,'_ he mused. "Mokuba might be getting married to a woman you disapprove but… marriage is something that can be undone if it doesn't work out," he mused, looking down to the blanket covering what was left of his legs. Then he looked up. "Right?"

The taller man glanced at him, his eyes skipping to his legs for a moment, before sighing. "Yeah," he then murmured. "Maybe… allowing Mokuba make his own mistakes… he might learn from them."

_'If it even is a mistake,'_ Yugi mused silently but said nothing. Then he shifted in his chair, lowering his hands to the handrims. "I think I'm going to get something to eat. Would you like something?"

"If you can bear to share," Kaiba sat up. With a smile Yugi turned the chair around and then pushed it towards the kitchen. While Yugi searched through his fridge to see what to eat, Kaiba sat down to the kitchen table. "Everything is low in this kitchen," the taller man mused. "You even have the fridge lower than usually."

"Easier for me to reach," Yugi shrugged. "The house was remodelled this way when the elevator was installed and I haven't had a good reason to undo the remodelling. This way is easer for me anyway."

Kaiba nodded and then just watched as Yugi started to make them sandwiches. Yugi knew that the man was probably accustomed to better sorts of cuisines than whatever he could make. He didn't care much though. Simple chicken sandwiches suited him and if they didn't suit Kaiba then he could go somewhere elsewhere to eat.

Soon they were done and after getting bottle of juice and glasses, Yugi carried them to the table. Kaiba didn't seem too dismayed about the simple snack as he reached to take one sandwich. There was a moment of comfortable silence as they just ate the simple food and listened to the quiet music. Then Kaiba spoke out.

"Mokuba said something… that seemed almost insignificant at the time," he sounded thoughtful. "When he told me that he would take her name, he said that he always hated the Kaiba name… I didn't even pay attention to it at the time but now…" the man snorted. "I hate the name Kaiba too."

Yugi raised his eyebrows. "Oh yeah, it was your adoptive father's name, um…. Gozaburo, right? Kaiba Gozaburo."

"Yeah," the taller man's eyes darkened. "I've always hated his name. Even though the bastard is long since dead… only now I wonder why I never changed the damn name."

The shorter male looked at the taller one worriedly for a moment. He could remember something Mokuba had said long time ago, something about Kaiba's past… that had something to do with Kaiba Gozaburo. It had been something unpleasant, but it had been so long ago - and so many things had happened since - that Yugi had forgotten what it was. "What was your name before he adopted you?" he asked. "Your family name I mean."

Kaiba was quiet for a moment before suddenly laughing a harsh, bitter laugh. "I can't remember," the man said with a wide smile full of emotions, none of them happy.

Yugi blinked at him with shock before lowering his eyes. With a dark chuckle Kaiba continued to eat his sandwich. _'Not remembering your own family name…'_ Yugi frowned slightly. _'The name you got from your parents… I wonder what that would be like.'_ He looked up to the other man to see that Kaiba's eyes were gleaming with some harsh emotion. "Mokuba probably doesn't remember it either then?" Yugi asked softly.

"Probably not," the taller man agreed.

_'Then taking her name is the only way for him to get rid of the name Kaiba - unless he will go through the process of changing his name by using the legal forms, however that works,'_ Yugi thought while biting into a sandwich. _'He, if he really loves her, probably prefers her name though. His brother might not see it like that, but that just might be it…'_ Yugi glanced up to the man, suddenly realising something "Should I call you Seto?" he asked.

The taller man's eyes widened slightly before narrowing. Then the man seemed to realise what he meant. "Mokuba is the only one who has called me that since Gozaburo's death," Kaiba spoke out thoughtfully. Then he shrugged. "I've called you Yugi ever since I found out you existed so I guess it's only fair."

Yugi grinned at the man's words. "And when did you find out that I existed?" he asked.

"When I visited your grandfather's shop and saw the Blue Eyes back when we were still in high school," the taller man said calmly while reaching for another sandwich.

"Ah yes, and then you stole it from me," Yugi snickered. "You tore it too. You meanie."

Seto made a dismissing motion with his hand. "That was then," he said as if it didn't matter. And maybe it didn't, not anymore. "Things are different now."

"They certainly are," Yugi smiled a little while pouring himself a glass of juice. "You know, this might be the best day I've had in years," he chuckled, gaining a shocked look from the other man. Yugi shook his head, motioning at his legs. "You don't how much it means to me that you don't find these - or me - revolting. It's a stupid thing to fear but…" he shook his head before smiling widely. "But still. The fact that you still sit here with me, eating and just talking… it means a lot."

"Put a cork in it, Yugi, before your sap starts to leak," Seto murmured but as he raised the sandwich to take a bite, it didn't quite hide his smile.

--

Yugi has lost his legs and the Kaiba brothers having a fight over a woman?! Le gasp! And Miho is canon. She was in the manga, juust in the beginning, and she was in anime, in the season zero. They made her into this annoying character in it, though, so I generally ignore that version of her. And nobody say a word about how Physiotherapy should be Physical Therapy. I'm not american. I don't have to use your terms. Ah, and I drew a pic of Yugi, link to my deviantart account should be on my profile. Thanks to everyone for your comments. :)


	4. IV chapter

**IV chapter**

Looking over the various printed images and sketches he had covered his work table with, Yugi narrowed his eyes. The Blue Eyes White Dragon was more complicated and in the same time far simpler than he had remembered. _'Now that I think about it, it's a very weird sort of dragon,'_ he mused, tilting his head to the side. _'The neck is really weird… when you look at it without knowing that it's supposed to be a dragon - and if you only see the head - it look's a little like those creatures from the Alien movies. Even if only a little.'_

Chuckling softly, he turned to the figurine he was making. It was still rather shapeless mass of light shaded polymer clay in wire frame. Glancing at the pictures one last time, Yugi reached for the clay and started to shape the clay into the form of the dragon. _'In most of the pictures and the cards, Blue Eyes stands on its hind legs with its front legs in the air,'_ he mused. _'I'm going to do something different. I'm going to make it crouch like it's about to attack…'_

After years of doing it, his fingers were adjusted to the shaping of the clay that he got barely any of it under his fingernails. With a chuckle he remembered the first attempts - the clay had been everywhere really. And he had either used too much or too little water while sculpturing… _'It was frustrating at times, but it was also fun. Hated to clean up after myself, though,'_ he mused while tilting the future-dragon's neck to the side a bit. _'And I could make such a mess.'_

Turning the sculpture, he shaped the arch of the Blue Eye's tail. _'I wonder what Seto will think of this?'_ he chuckled while turning the figurine again. _'Me, making a Blue Eyes. Hmm… maybe he will like it.'_

The thought of the president of the Kaiba Corp brought a gentle smile to his face. Unwittingly Yugi glanced down to his legs - that, underneath his pants, were completed by the prosthetics. _'Apart from myself and from the people at hospital… he's the only one who knows that my legs have been amputated. And… it doesn't bother him.'_ His smile widened as he turned his attention to the sculpture again. _'He doesn't find me disgusting or pathetic. Didn't call me a cripple even though that's what I am…'_

It was a nice feeling, to be accepted like that. Seto hadn't probably meant it like that, hadn't probably even though that Yugi would take it like that… but Yugi did. He had been worried for longer than he wanted to even remember. What would his friends think if they would ever find out, what would they say? Would they think of him as pathetic cripple - or worse yet, would they pity him? Seto hadn't, though. There had been something akin to sympathy in the man's eyes, but no pity.

_'Though it's hard to imagine Kaiba Seto pitying anyone,'_ Yugi laughed softly, reaching out for the trimming loop to start making the overall shapes of the wings. While moving slivers of clay from the wings, he hummed quietly. _'That situation with Mokuba… it makes a little more sense now. It's a bit incredible to think that Mokuba ended up together with Miho. I wonder if she has changed since our high school days… She was a popular girl back then, but always very quiet if I remember it correctly. Lots of guys liked her; Honda was just one of many… A bit strange that Seto never noticed her.'_

After a moment of thought he chuckled. _'Though, he didn't notice my existence either before he saw grandpa's Blue Eyes. When I greeted him back then he acted like he knew me but I doubt he even knew my name… That man even when he was young probably never paid any attention to the people around him - not unless they had something he wanted…'_ his chuckle faded into a sad smile as he placed another sliver of polymer clay aside. _'Though… It's a bit… painful to know that he didn't even notice me before then.'_

Shaking his head, he turned all his attention to the dragon he was making. He was forming the overall shapes of what would be the Blue Eye's hind legs when the phone rang. Thankfully it was sitting on the table next to his work table, so he only had to move his chair a bit to pick it up. "Turtle game store, Mutou Yugi speaking. How may I help you?" he answered to the phone, expecting it to be a customer - or possibly someone from the internet who wanted to buy DC3 from him.

"Are you busy?" the sound of Seto's voice made Yugi's eyes widen slightly. "Did I call at a bad time?"

"Nah. It's slow hour here, I'm just sculpturing," Yugi answered, though he was a bit confused. "What can I do for you? And how did you get this number?"

"I got the number from your website, obviously," the man answered with a flat voice, making Yugi chuckle. He could almost hear how the man rolled his eyes at him. "And I called to ask you if you're doing anything next Friday."

"I have nothing planned," the storekeeper chuckled. _'I never have anything planned. I though he'd know it by now.'_

"I was thinking about dropping by then." Yugi could hear a creak from the phone and imagined how Seto was sitting in some fancy office, leaning back on his comfortable, albeit creaking, chair. "I just realised that I've been showing up unannounced till now, so I thought I'd practice some level of… politeness this time."

Yugi laughed at the words - and the way Kaiba spoke them. Like politeness was a terrible chore or possibly a disease. "I'm sorry, but I have troubles associating you with manners," the shopkeeper chuckled. "I appreciate effort though, but you don't need to give me a call just to ask if you can come by. Just come, I'm here all the time anyway." He had his groceries delivered most of the time, so he didn't even venture out to get food. "Did you have something special planned for Friday then?" he asked. _'Okay, now I'm acting as if it's a date.'_

"Not really. It's just a day when I get off work early, so I thought it would be a good day to visit," the other man answered. "As long as you don't mind."

"Trust me, I don't," Yugi answered with a chuckle. _'It will be nice to spend Friday with someone,' _he mused silently. _'Well, the last time he visited was a Friday too, but that one wasn't exactly planned…'_ Leaning back in his chair he glanced at the clock near by. "You have lunch hour now?" he asked.

"Yeah. I was thinking about eating out, but my stupid worker decided to bother me with some game designs," the man sighed heavily. "They usually do it during lunch hour so I'm more or less forced to work even while eating."

"Aww, you poor man," Yugi chuckled softly. "What sort of game designs?"

"Wannabe game designers have habit of mailing their designs to us in hopes that they might get into the corporation," Seto muttered with annoyance. "Most of them are pure and utter crap but now and then we get some interesting ideas. My assistants thankfully screen the designs and filter most of the crap out but even the more decent ideas are mostly nothing but rubbish."

"Have you ever made a game from these mailed designs?" Yugi asked curiously.

"I have. Two, I think. I hired their designers too. The designer of the first one is still working in the company, but I fired the second one after he started to harass the female workers," the other man seemed thoughtful. "It was a while ago, though. Since then I haven't gotten any good idea from these wannabes and mostly I threw their crap away with the rest of the rubbish."

Yugi blinked with surprise. "You fired a worker for harassing other workers?" he asked. "Was he any good as a designer?"

"He was brilliant," Seto said with dismay. "His game was quite popular and brought nice profit - it would've been profitable to make a series out of it. But no matter how good he was, I couldn't allow him bother the other workers."

"So you actually… protected your female workers, huh?" Yugi stared up to the ceiling, a bit awed by the thought. He would've never thought that Seto would actually do that.

"Of course I did," there was a frown in the other man's voice. "I will not have illicit behaviour in my company. The women had been working here longer than him anyway. Compared to their experience, he was in the end expendable." He snorted. "Game ideas come and go, but really good programmers and artists are harder to come by."

Yugi chuckled. "I see," he answered with smile. _'So it wasn't the women themselves he was protecting, it was their skills. Still… it's nice to know that Seto, in a way, cares for his workers.'_ Reaching out, he nudged the side of the soon-to-be-Blue Eyes. "Ugly thing," he murmured.

"Hm?" the other man inquired.

"The sculpture I was making," Yugi shrugged even though there was no way for Seto to see it. "I'm only shaping the thing so it doesn't look too impressive"

"What are you making?" Seto asked, his voice accompanied by sound of paper being crushed.

Wondering what poor design the man had just discarded Yugi tilted his head to the side to pin the phone between his ear and his shoulder. "The Blue Eyes," he answered, reaching for the sculpture to continue working on it.

"Oh really?" Seto suddenly seemed more interested. "And where could've you possibly gotten the idea of making figurine of such a magnificent monster?"

"Oh shut it, I'm not going to give your ego any more boosts," Yugi chuckled. "If this turns out good, I might consider making a mould out of it. I haven't actually tried making one yet, though, so I might botch it up…"

"I have some sculptures working for me in the corporation," Seto quickly said. "Professional ones. One of them can make a mould out of your sculpture if out turns out well."

Yugi chuckled. "That sounds good, thank you," he said and then, hearing the door chime ringing in the shop, he glanced up. "I need to go, I got a customer," he then said, quickly reaching for near by towel to clean his hands of the clay. "Will you call back, or…?"

"I won't, my lunch hour is almost over," Seto answered. "I'll see you on Friday. I'll come around six, alright?"

"Alright, see you then," Yugi smiled. "Bye, Seto."

"Bye."

After hanging the phone, Yugi reached for his cane and sat up as quickly as he could. Then he limped to the side of the shop to see if the customer needed help with anything.

x

_'It's been a while since I've sat in my own car without driving it,'_ Seto mused while looking through the car's darkened window. He was sitting in the back while his driver, whose services he rarely required these days, was controlling the vehicle. _'Ever since I got driver's licence, I've never really needed a driver anymore. Not like back when I was too young to officially drive - though I could. I could even pilot a helicopter back then…'_ He folded his hands. _'This feels rather nostalgic,'_ he mused.

The reason why he wasn't driving was sitting beside him on the seat. Bottle of his favourite brandy in silver-shaded ice bucket - unopened right now, but it would be no doubt opened later on. And then he wouldn't be in any condition to drive. _'Strange. This whole situation is strange,'_ he though with a slight sneer. _'I'm going to spend my Friday night with Mutou Yugi of all people - intentionally to drink even!'_ he shook his head. _'Yugi is right. Hell must be freezing over.'_

It was a bit weird, but he had still been looking forward to the Friday. _'To look forward to a day - to a meeting. That doesn't happen that often these days,'_ he thought. Back before Mokuba had moved out, part of him had been expecting certain days and certain occasions. Before meeting that woman, Mokuba had had a habit of partying with his friends from his college. And when he had came back home, he and Seto had shared a glass of brandy before going to bed - and Mokuba had always been telling all about his night and about the stupid things his friends had been doing.

But ever since his brother had moved out, Seto had had little to look forward to, little to honestly expect. And now he was looking forward to spending his Friday with his former rival. _'Strange how things turn out,'_ he mused, glancing at the brandy bottle. _'But I really do enjoy his company.'_

But what exactly about it did he enjoy? Back when they had been younger, Seto had found Yugi annoying most of the time. So happy, always so stupidly happy… it had gotten to his nerves. _'He was so disgustingly naïve back then, but he's a bit different now,'_ the president of the Kaiba Corp mused. _'Still smiles and laughs entirely too much, but there's a… underlining in everything he does. These last ten years have changed him greatly, and the amputation… He's different.'_

Yugi had a look of wisdom in his eyes sometimes. Not the sort of hard knowledge that had resided in the eyes of Kaiba Gozaburo or the eerie knowledge of the future Ishtar Ishizu had possessed. Yugi had the worldly wisdom of a person who had suffered through his own personal hell. _'He said it well; he still stands,'_ Seto thought with a slight frown. _'Despite everything, he still stands. Without moral support and on broken legs… he still stands.'_

And Seto found that alluring in a way. There was strength in Yugi's small broken frame. _'And on top of that, he seems to endure my presence. Presence that makes my employees avoid me and pray that they don't anger me, presence that banished all my possible allies, presence that… drove Mokuba away,'_ the man shook his head at the slightly sad thought. _'Yugi shouldn't have any illusions about me - he should've seen me at my worst. He knows what I'm like and… he laughs at me.'_

Ever since Mokuba had left, no one had done that.

"Sir," the driver spoke out. "We will soon arrive. Shall I park when we get there?"

"No. Just leave me and go do what ever you want," Seto said, looking up. "I'll call you later to pick me up. I doubt that I will be in hurry to leave so you can take your time when you get here then."

"As you wish, sir," the driver nodded.

Soon the came to the Turtle game shop. Grapping the ice bucket and opening the car's door, Seto noted that the lights were still on the store though it probably was past the closing time. Slamming the car door shut after him, Seto headed towards the store's door, ignoring how the car drove away. As he tried the door, he was and in the same time wasn't surprised to find that it was open.

But it wasn't the game shop that he entered. For a moment he froze to stare at the strange forest he had entered, where bushes stood where the shelves and counter had been and trees had replaced the game store's wall. Then, realising what was going, he smirked. Yugi was playing with the Disk Console.

Closing the door, Seto ignored how it faded away and was replaced by the trees. As he stepped forward, the moss and leaves that covered the ground rustled under his shoes. He could hear some mysterious bird singing somewhere in the distance and heard and felt the wind that was gently blowing through the ancient looking forest. _'Yeah. My console is damn good,'_ he mused to himself with satisfaction. It was all hologram around him, but it was as real as a real forest would've been like. He could even smell the moistness of the forest.

"What are you playing?" Seto asked, stepping around the bushes in search for the store's owner. He found Yugi behind them, sitting in a wheelchair with blanket spreaded over his legs. Instead of doing anything, Yugi just was sitting there, leaning back in the chair with his eyes closed and a content expression on his face. "Yugi?" Seto asked, confusedly. It looked like the shorter male was sleeping.

"Hm?" the storekeeper opened his eyes. "Oh, hi Seto. I didn't hear you come in." Almost painstakingly Yugi straightened his neck and took a straighter posture in the chair. "I'm sorry. I turned the console on while waiting you, and I almost fell a sleep."

"What game is this?" Seto looked around in the forest again. In the past years his company had made so many hologram games that he had lost count of them. Most of them were like this - they transformed the room into something else, covering the walls and the furniture and such with holograms and integrating them into game. Probably many of them had forests, but he couldn't remember which game this forest belonged to. "There's no background music here," he noted with a frown. Most games had some music always playing in the background.

"It's not a game," Yugi shook his head. "This is one of my hologram chips. Mystical Forest number… seven I think," he chuckled.

"You collect terrain chips?" Seto was surprised. Most collected creature chips.

"Yeah," Yugi nodded, turning the wheelchair almost lazily and pushing it then around the bushes. The hologram was so real that the wheels left tracks on the moss and when Yugi pushed over a twig, Seto could hear it snap. "I guess I've grown to like other things than monsters and such since I was a teenager," he chuckled. "Must be the lack of adolescence hormones. Also the terrain chips are nice, easy way to experience other places without having to actually travel."

Yugi reached for something hidden in the bushes. Suddenly the forest, along with it sounds and smells, vanished and they were in the game store. When he pulled his hand back, he was holding the hologram chip.

Seto raised his eyebrows thoughtfully. Terrain holograms had been created to support the creature chips. Some liked to play with the creatures in strange terrains and it was popular for chip collectors to hold battles in terrains. He had never thought that someone would use terrain chips to imitate travelling.

"I've never thought that before," he mused thoughtfully. _'There are probably many people who can't travel much - money alone is an obstacle for many… With the holograms I could create imitation of foreign places - holograms of exotic locations…'_ Seto narrowed his eyes. He hadn't paid much attention to the terrain chips before, people were more interested about creature chips. But now the concept was surprisingly interesting. If he would create terrain holograms of actual places rather than places out of the designer's imagination… _'Those actually might sell rather well…'_

Shaking his head he turned to look at the shorter man. "Do you collect creature chips at all?"

"Nah," Yugi shook his head, placing the chip down to his lap before propelling the wheelchair from between the shelves and then towards the counter. "I either sell or trade them away - I'm more interested about terrains really." Pushing the chair behind the counter, he reached to take something from underneath it. It was a box - one full of hologram chips. There was probably about forty or fifty of them. "They're all different terrains," Yugi said while placing the chip he had used among the other ones.

"Impressive," Seto murmured. It really was. There weren't more than fifty four terrains in total, and Yugi by the looks of it had majority of them if not all of them.

"Maybe," Yugi shrugged, closing the box and putting it back beside the counter. Then he glanced up, his eyes stopping for the moment onto the silver bucket Seto was carrying - and the bottle in it. "Are you planning to get me drunk?" he then asked with amusement written all over his face.

Glancing at the brandy bottle, Seto nodded with serious face. "I am," he answered.

The shorter male laughed softly at the words, making Seto secretly pleased that Yugi found his limping attempt of humour actually amusing. "If you would be kind enough to lock the front door, we could then go upstairs - where I have some glasses," Yugi said with a smile.

Nodding, Seto left the bucket to the counter and returned to the door to lock it. When he turned, Yugi was examining the bottle curiously. "Brandy, huh?" he asked with amusement, glancing up. "Are you trying to convert me?"

"No, I'm trying to get you drunk," Seto answered calmly, getting another laugh out of the other man. Shaking his head Yugi placed the bucket to his lap before turning and then rolling himself towards the backroom. For a moment Seto was tempted to take hold of the wheelchair's handles and push the chair, but he immediately decided against it. _'I can see it as helping, but… it would probably be cruel. It would take away what little mobility he has in that thing.'_ Shaking his head he just followed the other.

Then he remembered what he and Yugi had talked on the phone. "You were making Blue Eyes, right?" he asked then, glancing towards the table where he had seen Yugi's figurines. There, in the middle of the table, stood the dragon. It was still unfinished, Seto could tell that, but it was obvious that Yugi had worked hard on it - even in unfinished state, the details were amazing.

"It's still not ready," Yugi propelled the chair to the table. "But I'm getting there."

"Yeah," Seto murmured, crouching beside the table to examine the sculpture from different angle. "It looks good."

"Thanks," Yugi smiled. "I'm going to need some directions with how to bake it, though. Well, I know how to bake it, but since your worker is going to make moulds from it, I probably can't bake it as a single piece."

"I'll ask them," Seto nodded, straightening his back. "But that will have to wait until next week."

"No hurries, it's not even finished yet," Yugi chuckled, grasping a hold of the wheelchair's handrims again and pushing the chair to the small room where the elevator was.

With a last glance to the unfinished dragon, Seto followed him. Soon they were on the elevator, which was slowly taking them to the second floor. _'It's still somewhat amusing to take elevator in a house where there are only two floors,'_ Seto mused, glancing down to Yugi. _'But on other hand, it's not amusing at all.'_

Soon they were in the second floor. Stepping out of Yugi's way, Seto undressed his shoes and waited until the smaller male had made his way out of the elevator. Then he followed the other through the hall and to the kitchen. After Yugi had gotten glasses from a cupboard, the shopkeeper rolled the chair towards the living room, Seto following soon after him. Like last time, the prosthetics were sitting on the couch.

"Let me put those away," Yugi said, placing the glasses and silver bucket to the coffee table. Then he grabbed the prosthetics and carried them to the side of the room, placing them into a drawer that stood there. Watching him, Seto sat down to the couch. Considering its age, the couch was surprisingly comfortable.

"Do we have any special reason as to why we are drinking?" Yugi asked while turning the chair around to return to the table.

"Not really," Seto shook his head while leaning forward to open the brandy bottle. The glasses Yugi had selected were nowhere near being worthy of the brandy, but at that moment Seto hardly cared. Yugi probably didn't even have proper glasses for expensive alcohol. "Should there be?"

"So you're getting me drunk for the sake of getting me drunk," Yugi mused seriously before grinning. "I think I can handle that."

Shaking his head Seto poured them both shots before closing the bottle and putting it back into the ice. As Yugi reached for one of the glasses, Seto added few cubes of ice into the other one. Then he took the glass and brought it to his lips - not to drink, but to just enjoy the scent of the alcohol. He glanced at the smaller man, half expecting Yugi to ask for a toast. But he didn't. The shopkeeper seemed more interested about examining the brandy.

"You've never drank anything stronger than cider, have you?" Seto asked with slight amusement at the way Yugi scrunched his nose at the scent of the liquor.

"I have but not in a long while," Yugi chuckled. "There was one time when one of grandpa's friends brought a bottle of something while visiting… can't remember what it was. I couldn't even drink the entire glass of it. Grandpa seemed to like it though."

"Maybe you should start slowly then," Seto couldn't help the smirk. "This might be too strong for you."

"It wasn't because I can't hold my liquor. It just tasted weird, that's all," Yugi murmured and threw a glare at him as his smirk widened slightly. Then the shorter man chuckled as well. "You're more relaxed than usually."

"I had a glass at home," Seto shook his head. _'Embarrassing really, to get nervy because of meeting like this.'_

"I see," Yugi smiled and turned his attention to the glass.

Smothering a chuckle at the serious look on the shorter male's face, Seto leaned back in the couch and took a small sip of the brandy. Yugi did the same very carefully, getting a thoughtful look to his face. "Bad?" Seto asked, wondering how watching someone drink - or try to - could be so entertaining.

"I don't know," Yugi answered with a puzzled look on his face, looking at the glass of brandy as if not knowing what to make of it. "Better than that stuff grandpa's friend brought, that's for sure," he licked his lip thoughtfully. "I think I prefer cider."

"You have no taste," Seto sighed, earning a soft chuckle from the other man.

x

Yugi hummed softly while examining the glass in his hand. It was his glass, the same glass he drank water or juice whenever he ate. Somehow the caramel coloured liquid in it made the glass look completely foreign. Or maybe it was the taste that still made his mouth feel strangely warm.

_'I have no taste, huh?'_ he thought with amusement while leaning back in his chair. _'Might be true. I've never had any reason to drink expensive alcohols. I've only been drunk one time - on the night of my twenty-first birthday - and the morning after didn't make it seem like experience worthy of repeating…'_ But now Seto was here, and it seemed like getting Yugi drunk was the man's only motive. _'Interesting how I don't mind at all. It seems actually sort of fun.'_

"How has the console auction been going?" Seto asked after a moment of silence.

"Well. I stepped it up and I'm now auctioning five consoles per day," Yugi said, raising the glass again to take another careful sip. "I want to get the consoles sold before the actual release date kicks in. I probably have to settle for some low profits with the last days, though."

"You should still get your money back with interest," Seto mused.

"I already have, so it's fine," Yugi chuckled, rolling the brandy's taste in his mouth. _'I might be able to get adjusted to this taste,'_ he thought. Then he reached to take a cube of ice from the bucket. _'Hehe. Somehow amusing that Seto carried a bucketful of ice here. Though these sorts of bucket thingies are probably made specifically for this sort of purposes, it's still amusing.'_

"Are you going to be able to release the console as planned even though the warehouse burned?" he asked while dropping the ice cube into his glass. _'Maybe this will mellow the strong taste down somewhat.'_

"I will be. My workers have been working overtime to overcome the loss of the consoles," Seto answered before sighing. "This is a very bad month. Burned down ware house, thousands of useless games, most of them fit only to be thrown away and now I have to pay my workers for longer hours…"

Yugi smiled a little. "Well, I doubt this thing will take you to bankruptcy, so stop whining," he said. _'After accident it would've taken nothing but a bit stronger breeze to blow my little business to the ground. Kaiba Corporation will need a mixture of hurricane and tsunami before it will even waver.'_

"I wasn't whining," Seto glared at him, but there was no edge in it.

Smiling, Yugi shifted into more comfortable position and brought the glass to his lips. The ice in the brandy didn't affect the taste much, but he was getting adjusted to it. "By all reason we shouldn't be drinking together," he mused with a chuckle. "If we didn't share the past we do, we wouldn't be. Little shop owner like me and big shot like you? We have almost nothing in common!"

"We have many things in common," Seto corrected. "For one, we're working on the same field - I make games, you sell them."

"I'm still just one in hundreds of others keeping little game shops and I doubt you would sit down to have a glass with them," Yugi smiled. "If we didn't share the past we did, you wouldn't look me twice. And I wouldn't be able to speak to you without stuttering, probably," he grinned the thought of that. _'If I didn't know Seto, I wouldn't know how to act around him.'_

The other man smirked at his words. "If you didn't know me, I'd had you stuttering? I'd make the King of Games stutter?" he asked amusedly. "Why?"

"Why do I end up giving you ego boosts?" Yugi sighed with amusement before turning his eyes to the other man. "Well, just look at yourself. Even now you're wearing expensive suit and a tie - and you have a golden pin in your tie!" he shook his head. "You drive in expensive car and you're probably rich enough to look down upon millionaires."

The taller man smiled a little at the words. "So rich people make you stutter?"

"Rich people are powerful and influential people," Yugi shook his head. "And I'm just a humble shopkeeper. Handicapped one at that. What could a guy like me say to a guy like you - you know, if I didn't know you? Even if I would be able to figure out something to say, it would probably come out as incoherent stutter and you'd be sick of me within first sentence. No way would you sit down to have a glass with me."

Seto snorted. "Alright," he said. "What about knowing me prevents that stutter?"

Yugi stopped to think about it. "I actually don't know," he then said. "I guess it's the overall knowledge. Knowing about your past and family, some of your likes and dislikes… it makes you more familiar."

"And familiarity breeds contempt," Seto said, turning his eyes to the brandy glass.

"What a negative approach," Yugi shook his head with a sad smile. "Being more familiar with you makes you feel safer to me. I know approximately what to expect from you. Because of that I can relax around you," he turned his attention to the brandy before taking a swallow.

Seto didn't say anything to that and for a moment they drank in silence. Yugi knew that the alcohol was starting to affect him quicker than it was affecting Seto - he just wasn't used to strong liquor like brandy - but he didn't care much. _'This is almost like the Friday habit with grandpa - except I'm actually getting buzzed…'_ he frowned a little at the thought, glancing at the other man. _'I wonder… if he intended it. I told him about the habit, and now he's here, with a bottle, on a Friday…'_

After moment of thinking wondering about it, he decided that it was fine whether Seto had meant it or not. _'Either or, this is nice. A less lonely Friday all the Fridays of last four or so years. He might be here because of that too. To feel less alone - not that he'd admit that…'_ he sipped the brandy again. Then he smiled. _'…They're sharing a drink they call loneliness, but it's better than drinking alone…'_ he sang in his head, unconsciously starting to hum along with the lyrics.

Seto looked up, frowning. "What's that?" he asked.

"What's what?"

"That thing you're humming."

Yugi blinked. "Piano man by Joel Billy," he answered. When it seemed like the other man had no idea what he was talking about, he frowned. "You've never heard it?" he asked with disbelief. Seto shook his head and Yugi mock scoffed. "You uncultured prude! It's a legendary song!" With an exaggerated huff he placed his glass to the table before turning his wheelchair and rolling to a near by cabinet. "I'll play it for you," he said, opening the cabinet and starting to search for a certain CD among the records that filled the cabinet.

As soon as he had found it, he turned to the CD player that sat on the drawer beside the cabinet. After placing the CD on and making the player play that certain song, he turned to return to the table. The song started to play and looking slightly amused, Seto listened to the words. "Good song for having a drink," the man then mused.

"Hmm," Yugi nodded. _'Hmm… the mood turned more comfortable with music. I should've thought to put something on earlier,'_ he thought, trying to shift into more comfortable position in the chair. As comfortable as the chair was in comparison to the prosthetics, its seat wasn't the softest around.

Yugi looked t the couch thoughtfully before pushing the chair beside it. As Seto gave him a strange look, Yugi shifted in the chair, took hold of the couch's pillows, and hoisted himself to sit on the couch. When Seto looked at him confusedly, he shrugged. "The couch is softer to sit in," Yugi said, quickly pulling the blanked over his legs from where it had shifted. "The chair is comfortable, but it's also a bit hard. Harder than the couch anyway."

The taller man looked at the chair and then hummed in understanding. As Yugi pushed the chair aside, Seto leaned back against the couch's backrest again. "You should get a pillow for the chair or something," he suggested, watching how Yugi tugged the blanket securely around his hips. "You don't need to hide your legs from me," the taller man then said. "I've already seen them once."

Yugi gave the man an uncomfortable look. "You only saw them briefly," he murmured, quickly reaching for his glass and taking a swallow. _'I'm adjusted to them - I've been living four years with them. But Seto hasn't… it's alright for him to get a brief glance that he won't remember clearly, but having to see them all the time? He might get…'_

"I'm not bothered," the taller man said, shaking his head. "And I'm not repulsed by them. So you don't need to hide them for my sake."

Yugi glanced at him and then just shrugged his head. "The blanket keeps me from getting cold," he then said, taking another swallow of the brandy. _'Now I'm just making excuses. But…'_

Seto gave him a serious look before sighing. "Whenever you're ready then," he said.

The shorter man stared at his glass for a moment before nodding and draining last of his drink. Without saying anything, Seto reached for the bottle and poured him another shot.

x

Yugi was starting to get drunk very fast, it was easy to tell. After draining his first glass, he had drunk the second one rather quickly as well. Now there was a blush on his face and slightly too relaxed look about his face. Currently he was humming a bit off tune along with the music that still played on the background - apparently he had set the CD on repeat. It was probably a good thing. The music kept the mood from getting awkward even though they hadn't spoken anything since Yugi had shifted from the chair to the couch.

"You know, I hated the hospital," Yugi suddenly said, breaking away from humming. "But it was easier there too. Kinda. There was never anything to do in there - and I started to really hate TV - but there… no one gave me those looks. You know, those looks people give to cripples. Like pity and indifference mixed. Like they care just enough to notice me only to forget me soon after."

Seto blinked. He had noticed the lack of TV but hadn't thought about it much. _'He probably watched it a lot in the hospital,'_ he mused before giving the other man a thoughtful look. "People look at you like that these days?"

"Well, not as much. I rarely even go out these days," Yugi sighed. "Last time I went out was with you. But in the beginning, before I learned to use the prosthetics, when I had to use the wheelchair all the time… people looked at me. And they really didn't do that in the hospital because, well… hospitals are full of sick people. I was just one among many there. Amputated maybe, but still one of many."

Yugi leaned his head back and stared at the ceiling. Then he looked Seto almost confusedly. "I don't know what to do with you, you know? I know that how you act towards me is how people should, I mean… if they cared about me. But aside from the doctors and other hospital people, no one has acted towards me like you do. It's kinda… confusing at times. It's nice but still…" he shook his head. "It's new, you know?"

"I really don't," Seto answered, not knowing what to say really. "But don't expect me to act any different."

The other man chuckled. "That helps," he said, closing his eyes for a moment. "I don't know what to do with you, but you're still Kaiba Seto. You haven't changed that much. Makes it easier to understand you. Even when I don't."

Seto smiled slightly at the words. Then he frowned. "I can't understand you at times," he then confined in sudden bout of honestly. "I never really could. You never acted like I thought people should act. Still don't." Yugi was strong willed but now Seto knew that he was a bit afraid too. Afraid to show the legs - even though Seto had already seen them, he still hid them. Not because he was ashamed, there was no hint of shame in him. Occasional embarrassment maybe but no shame. _'Fear of rejection, he said. Maybe that's it.'_

Turning his eyes to the other man, Seto found Yugi watching him intently. When the shorter man didn't say anything, Seto spoke. "You're still standing. In more ways than one you're still standing. So that thing you do with the blanket - hiding yourself… it just doesn't fit. I don't find you disgusting," he assured, noticing how the other man's eyes turned sharper with his words. "I'm not going to reject you."

Yugi's eyebrows rose at these words before he chuckled and turned away. "You won't reject me, huh?" he mused with a slightly sleepy smile on his lips. "Strange thing to say."

"You said that you… you said that it was a mental process with amputees. Fear of rejection," Seto frowned at the other's amusement.

"I didn't mean that," the shorter man shook his head, taking a sip of his brandy. Then he leaned his head back and closed his eyes again. "It's just that…Well. Before you noticed that I existed, before… before the whole Duel Monsters fuss started, before all that… you rejecting me was a thing I feared the most."

"Huh?" Seto stared the other with confusion.

Yugi swallowed, the sleepy smile staying on his lips. "Before I actually knew you, I had a crush on you about the size of Domino," the shorter man said and the laughed. "Isn't that funny? I remember when you came to our school - you were home schooled before that time, right? You were… nothing like me. You were cold and unkind to everyone. Top of the class but no one still bothered you even though logically they should've been calling you a geek or something. You even told the teachers off and they never bothered you…"

Speechless Seto couldn't say a word as the other continued. "You were untouchable while I… Well I was beaten up when I as much as sneezed. Seeing someone like you, it was… I looked up to you. And you didn't even know I existed. I wanted to talk to you and didn't dare - I mean, at that point you had turned down half of the girls in our class with interest so…" Yugi chuckled again. "It didn't last long, no matter what I wasn't stupid enough to hurt myself intentionally, so I forced myself to look elsewhere. To Anzu, actually. It was easy, same colour hair, almost same colour eyes, both of you were taller than me… I didn't quite manage to get attracted to her, I just ended up being awkward every time she got too near, but at least I forgot you. Eventually…" he yawned.

Finally Seto managed to shake his head out of the shock. "You had a crush on me of all people?" he asked with disbelief.

"Me and half of the school really," Yugi chuckled, waving dismissively with his hand. "You broke quite handful of hearts in those first weeks you were in our school. And I doubt you even noticed any of it - which is probably why we liked you," he turned to look at the taller man. "No need to look so shocked. It was a crush over ten years ago. I didn't confess my undying love for you or anything."

Seto snorted despite himself before leaning his elbow to the backrest of the couch and his cheek against his knuckles. "Are you gay, Yugi?" he then asked.

"I haven't really thought about it," the shorter man shook his head, shifting into more comfortable position. "Things like that lost meaning with the Duellist Kingdom and Battle City and all that. And when this happened…" he patted his leg lazily. "I sort of stopped having any hopes of ever having a love life. Doesn't matter anymore, I guess."

As the taller man watched him thoughtfully, Yugi closed his eyes, shifting his shoulders a bit before sighing. Seto knew that Yugi was probably starting to slip into slumber - he wasn't passing out, but it seemed like alcohol made Yugi sleepy. His eyes had been drooping for a while. The taller man decided to let him. He wasn't quite sure what to say anyway.

After a while Seto reached to place his glass on the table before taking Yugi's glass from the man's hand and setting it to the side as well. Yugi opened his eyes partially when he did, but they fell slowly shut again. After that Seto just listened to the music and watched how Yugi fell asleep. For some reason, watching the other man just breath was very calming.

_'He looks older when he's sleeping than he does when he's awake,'_ Seto mused, his eyes wandering over Yugi's face. _'He frowns in his sleep. And when his eyes aren't open, they don't seem as big as they normally do. He also has shadows under his eyes, I barely even noticed them before…'_ he smiled crookedly. _'Still doesn't look his age, though. Even now he looks barely twenty.'_

The music continued to play as Yugi's sleep got deeper. Finally Seto started to realise the time. _'I should take him to bed or something. And I should go home,'_ he mused almost reluctantly. He didn't get up yet, enjoying the last moment of calm before he had to move.

Finally he sighed before sitting up and going to check where Yugi's bedroom was. After finding it, he returned to the living room and carefully untagged the blanket from around the other man's legs. Yugi was wearing shorts underneath it. _'They're not ugly,'_ he thought, his eyes passing over the stumps that had once continued into shins and feet. _'They are odd, I can't deny that, but… they're not ugly.'_

Shaking his head, Seto carefully picked the sleeping man up. It was rather hard since Yugi didn't have proper knees and Seto couldn't place one of his arms under them. Instead he had to hold onto Yugi's thighs rather awkwardly. Thankfully Yugi was a small man - he hadn't grown much since they had been teenagers - so he was rather light to carry. He didn't even budge as Seto sat up with him in his arms.

_'Apparently after drinking he'll sleep like a log,'_ Seto mused, carrying the other man out of the living room and to the bedroom. There he nudged the covers from the way before placing Yugi down. The small man merely sighed and turned to his side while Seto tugged the covers over him. _'I should probably push the wheelchair here,'_ he then thought, looking around in the bedroom. _'Otherwise he'll have problems getting anywhere in the morning…' _Seto blinked before sighing with irritation. _'Why didn't I just put him into the wheelchair and push him into the bedroom? That would've saved me from the trouble of carrying him…'_

Shaking his head he returned to the living room where he turned the music off. After pushing the wheelchair to Yugi's bedroom, Seto took their glasses to the kitchen and emptied the ice to the sink. After moment of thinking, he left the half drank brandy bottle to the kitchen counter. Yugi could decide what to do with it later, pour it down the drain if he wanted to. Seto had half dozen bottles like it at his mansion.

With everything more or less done, Seto called for his driver so that he would be picked up. As he waited for the car to arrive he battled against the desire to stretch himself on Yugi's couch and just sleep over. Staying over would've been easier but much too awkward for Yugi, no doubt.

That night he fell asleep wondering how anyone could've liked him when he had been young, when he had freshly enrolled to Domino high school. He had been barely sane back then. Why would Yugi, kind guy who would no doubt be perfect for anyone he happened to like… why would he like someone like Seto?

x

Yush, now we're on the path to something. And Billy Joel is written as "Joel Billy" because they're in Japan, last names first and all. Yeah, Miho was called Ribbon in the manga occasionally and was a spoiled and mildly annoying in the anime, which is why I intend to ignore the anime version of her. My apologies for possiple mistakes and such. And thank you all a great big bunch. Your reviews have been seriously awesome. :D

I might start updating this thing twice per week, but I'm not sure yet. If I post a chapter next wednesday, I'll be updating this every Wednesday and Saturday. If I won't post it, then the once-per-week pace will continue.


	5. V chapter

**V chapter**

Seto couldn't work. Irritably tapping the corner of his laptop with his pen, he kept staring at the document open on the computer's screen and couldn't figure out what sentence he had been reading. His thoughts kept straying and no matter how he tried he couldn't stop himself from thinking about Yugi.

Mutou Yugi. His former rival. The shopkeeper confused him. For one, he didn't know what Yugi was to him now. Drinking buddy? Friend? Could he actually say that Mutou Yugi was his friend? Whilst part of him liked that notion, it still puzzled the heck out of him. Other than Mokuba, who was his brother and therefore naturally close to him, he had never really had any friends. Acquaintances, associates, rivals and enemies, but no friends. Yet now…

_'I always disliked the word friendship. Yugi and his friends over used the word so much that it was probably moaning in pain,'_ Seto snorted. _'Listening to them made it seem like something… I don't know, consuming. Like a mental illness or something. Aside from that, I never really understood the idea behind making friends. I can understand the importance of having associates and colleagues - business partners and such. But friends? What are they good for?'_

Unbidden, memories of the times when Yugi and his friends had been supporting each other roused their heads. How like when Yugi had fallen, that blonde mutt or the brunette bimbo had always been there to catch him. Of how Yugi's other personality had declined from duelling against Seto, because that blonde mutt had been in danger and in need of rescuing. It had seemed so… annoying.

_'I always thought it was stupid and absurd that Yugi's other personality wanted to save the mutt rather than duel me. But I guess I can in a way understand - I would do the same for Mokuba, and I have. But…' _Seto frowned slightly, brushing his hand over his lips. _'The way they were always there picking each other up… that pissed the hell out of me. If there is always someone there to pat your back and help you stand, can you ever learn to stand on your own and stick up for yourself? Every time someone pulled Yugi to his feet I kept thinking that. If someone always helped him, how could he ever learn to stand by himself?'_

Of course, Yugi had learned to stand by himself - in a very cruel way at that. His feet had been literally taken from under him and alone he had learned to stand again. _'I would probably do the same in his situation, but thinking of his past… it's amazing that he did it all without help…'_ Seto shook his head.

But in the end that wasn't what was bothering him so much. It was Yugi's little confession the previous night. _'How could a person like Yugi actually like someone like me? Especially the way I was back then?'_ he shook his head, not understanding it at all. _'I enrolled in Domino high school almost immediately after Gozaburo's suicide - I was sick and tired of home schooling. I enrolled Mokuba in elementary round the same time… and at that time…'_ Seto's eyes darkened at the memory of his own mental state back then.

_'I don't think I overcame my own insanity until Yugi's other self put me into a coma,'_ he mused. _'I hate to admit it, but that… woke me up. Before that I was more or less crazy - still twisted thanks to what that bastard stepfather of mine did. Of course I didn't know it at the time and I doubt Yugi did either - he probably still doesn't - but…'_

Slapping the pen down to the table, he leaned back in his chair and folded his hands. A wave of sheer discomfort ran over him as he remembered the months after his stepfather's death. No one, not even Mokuba knew it, but looking back to himself and how he had been… it disturbed him. Sometimes it even frightened him, the thought of how he could've turned out without Yugi's other personality's intervention. If he had been allowed to continue on that trail…

_'It makes no sense that Yugi of all people could've found the me of that time appealing,'_ he shook his head with disbelief. _'Yugi of all people, even back then, should've known madness when he saw it. His other self broke my insanity, so Yugi should've known… he should've seen…'_ Seto closed his eyes. _'Logically, he should've feared me.'_

After a moment he opened his eyes, his frown only deepening. _'Or maybe that is why he forced himself to look elsewhere. Maybe he didn't see it at first, but as he realised it, he turned his attention elsewhere. Like Mokuba, he realised what sort of person I really am, or how I was at the time anyway…'_ that made more sense. But for some reason it caused a sharp string of discomfort somewhere between his lungs.

_'I wonder… if he hadn't turned away… would've I regained my senses earlier?_' Seto wondered, his frown slipping slightly. _'If he had ran with it … if he had told me…'_ he shook his head quickly at the idea. He knew how he would've reacted and that reaction would have not been pretty. _'I probably would've belittled him - or used it against him - at the time,'_ he thought, shifting in his seat with discomfort. _'So he was right to turn away, but… I wonder if he could've changed me? He changed many people, even Marik, who was far more insane than I ever was. If he had, if I had… would've I still raised my hand against Mokuba?'_

But, as much as the thought bothered him, it didn't really matter anymore, did it? It had been ten years ago and like Yugi had said, it had only been a crush. One Yugi had been able to forget rather quickly at that. It was just too late to wonder about it now - and Seto wasn't one to keep looking at the past anyway. He preferred to keep his eyes on the present.

Brushing his hand through his hair, he glanced at his wrist watch. It was still early in the morning. He hadn't been able to sleep properly in the previous night so he had gotten out of bed earlier than usual. Even though it was a day off for him, he had decided to go through some work he had so far left unfinished. He had thought to use the time on something meaningful… only to find out that he couldn't.

_'I wonder if Yugi has woken up yet,'_ Seto thought, leaning back in his seat again. _'That was first time he has drank seriously in a while, at least so I figured. He didn't drink that much, but with his inexperience… the hangover might be bad. Especially for someone of his position…'_ he glanced at his cell phone that was sitting beside the laptop. _'Maybe I should call him…'_

He knew somewhere in the back of his mind that it's not something he should do, or something he'd usually do. Usually he didn't go drinking with people he had known when he had been seventeen either, but to worry after someone enough to call them? That was not him, never had been him. Only human being on earth that could make him worry was supposed to be Mokuba, the only relative he cared about.

Still he reached for the phone. He had two of Yugi's phone numbers - the game shop's landline phone's number and then Yugi's own cell phone's number. When he had called Yugi the last time, it had been the game shop he had called. He had thought that at that time Yugi was no doubt working, so it had been the logical choice. This time he selected the cell phone number. It took good ten, fifteen seconds for Yugi to answer.

"Hello, Mutou Yugi speaking?" a tired voice half groaned to the phone, followed by a sound that could only be a yawn.

"Did I wake you?" Seto asked, leaning back in his chair and imagining that Yugi was still in his bed, stretching after waking up. For some reason the thought brought a slight smile to his face.

"Seto? Yes you woke me up," Yugi grumbled and Seto could hear the bed creaking through the phone as if Yugi was moving. "Why on earth are you calling me at such an ungodly hour?"

"Eight am is not ungodly," Seto stifled a chuckle. "And I called to check up on you. You said that you hadn't drank in a while so I thought you might be throwing your guts up right about now.

"Eight is an ungodly hour when it is Saturday," Yugi disagreed. "You're supposed to sleep in on Saturdays you know. Gah, my mouth tastes horrible… And no, I'm not throwing my guts up, not yet anyway. My head feels like someone banged it against the wall a few times, though…" he yawned again. "How did I end up in my bedroom?"

"I carried you after you fell asleep," Seto said. "I figured that sleeping on the couch might be uncomfortable."

"Hmm… Okay, now my morning is just a little bit more embarrassing," Yugi mumbled. "You shouldn't have bothered. I've slept on the couch before, it's not that uncomfortable. My own fault for falling asleep anyway." He paused for a moment. "Did you push the wheelchair in here too?" he then asked with surprise.

"I did. I thought that without it you might have some problems getting anywhere in the morning," Seto mused. He grimaced a little at the thought of Yugi trying to get out of the bedroom without the wheelchair - it was not a nice picture.

"You thought correctly," Yugi mumbled, sounding still slightly surprised. "Thank you," he then added, his words slow and clear in his honest gratitude. There was a short silence before he laughed awkwardly. "Why do I suddenly have the feeling that I might've said something incriminating to you before passing out?" he asked. "I didn't say anything embarrassing, did I?"

Seto opened his mouth, at first about to say the brutally honest answer. Then he hesitated, knowing that it would be embarrassing for Yugi to find out what he had said. But lying would be even worse than telling the truth - after everything, Seto found the idea of being dishonest to Yugi somehow upsetting. "Maybe," he then said. "Though it wasn't as much embarrassing as it was confusing."

"Oh maan…" Yugi moaned with embarrassed chuckle. "What did I say? Tell me so that I may try redeeming myself in your eyes."

Seto chuckled, leaning back in his chair. He hesitated for a moment before speaking out. "You said that you had a crush on me once," he then said, trying to lighten the words with slight teasing - though it came out more as accusation than teasing.

"Okay, that is embarrassing," Yugi sighed heavily, falling quiet for a moment. Then he continued with apologetic tone. "I'm really sorry. I probably made you feel uncomfortable by saying that. It was long ago though."

"Hm. So you said," Seto agreed.

Yugi coughed awkwardly. "It would be a pity if this would… but I can understand if you don't want to have anything to do with me after this," he then said quietly. "Even though it was long ago, I can imagine that it might turn things awkward and…"

_'He thinks that I won't want anything to do with him because he might be gay?'_ Seto shook his head. "Don't be stupid. I'm not bothered by the fact that you had a crush on me," he said. "Or maybe I am… but it's not because of your gender," he leaned back in his chair. "What bothers me is why you liked me of all people… and why you stopped liking me."

"Hm…" Yugi hummed softly. "This is really embarrassing to talk about you know, but I guess I owe you as much," he mused. "It was basically because you were stronger than me. Strong willed, imposing and independent - nothing like me. I desperately wanted to get friends, while you seemed to dislike very the notion of them. The contrast was… alluring. As I wondered what made you like that, what made you tick so to speak… I started to admire you more and more." he chuckled painfully. "And as to why I stopped liking you… well, it wasn't as much stopping as it was giving up."

"Giving up?" Seto asked with confusion. _'He gave up on me? Like Mokuba, he realised that I wasn't good enough?'_

"Yeah. I realised that it would never go anywhere," Yugi mused. "You never even spared a glance at me so how could it work? You had other things on your mind, other priorities… so I turned my attention away." Then the shopkeeper suddenly chuckled. "Some of it survived to Duellist Kingdom though. It was a bit awkward but thankfully no one noticed."

"Huh?" Seto blinked. "Duellist Kingdom?"

"You don't remember? That duel you had with my other self on top of the towers of Pegasus's castle," Yugi chuckled.

Seto frowned, his hand coming up to his chest where, underneath his clothing, hung a pendant with Mokuba's picture inside it. He could remember the duel. Pegasus had forced him to duel Yugi in order to get to Mokuba who had been held hostage by Pegasus. Even though his company had been in danger even though Pegasus had been trying to take over, Mokuba had been the priority. He hadn't even really cared about why Pegasus had made him duel Yugi. Winning had been all he had cared about.

His frown darkened as he remembered the end of the duel. He had stepped onto the tower's edge so that if Yugi's other self had attacked - and therefore won the duel - the wind pressure of the attack would've sent him to his death. At that point, winning had meant more than his life to him.

"My other self was willing to attack you even though you were standing on the edge of your own death," Yugi chuckled sadly. "We had a life at stake too, you know. My grandfather's life. His resolution to win was just as strong as yours, he would've killed you… you idiot."

Seto flinched a little at the words.

"But I couldn't let you die. Well, I would've done it for anyone really. I wasn't about to let anyone get killed before me if I could stop it," Yugi sighed. "But no one else would've made me cry. You did - and you called me soft because of it. You stupid bastard. It still makes me mad, thinking about it," the shopkeeper laughed. "That was the last of my crush. What you did, or what you said afterwards, made me realise that it didn't really matter what I might've felt. You didn't care in any case."

Seto sighed at the words. "For all that it's worth, I had a reason for that," he said. "And I'm sorry."

"Mokuba, I know," Yugi chuckled softly. "I understand - you don't need to apologise. Your will to die and my other self's will to kill weren't that much different in the end. Honestly saying, I was more mad at him for ever thinking that killing you was the right way of proceeding. It was a difficult time for all of us, we all had our motives. It was so long ago that it shouldn't affect us anyway."

"Yeah, I suppose so," Seto murmured, though he still felt uncomfortable. Back then Yugi had seemed like a soft idiot to him - unable to do what he had to do for a win. Now it just made him feel like an idiot - Yugi hadn't cried because of his supposed softness. He had cried for Seto - and though it made him feel unspeakably awkward, it also… warmed him a little to think that Yugi had actually cared for him that much. And that just made him feel a bit more like an asshole.

"My, isn't this an awkward conversation," Yugi muttered with amusement. "Did I say anything else that I should explain so that it won't start haunting us later on?"

"No, I think that was it as far as embarrassment goes," Seto sighed with a small smile. "May I take you out for a lunch to make up for forcing you to tell me this - and for what I did back then?" he then asked before he could stop himself.

Yugi laughed softly. "Alright, if you really want to," he said. "Around when? And give me enough time to get a bath, I don't exactly smell sweet right now."

Seto smirked and glanced his watch. "How about I pick you up around noon maybe? That would give you four hours. Think you can make it?"

"I should be able to," the shopkeeper laughed. "I'll see you then."

"Alright. Bye Yugi," Seto said and after getting a similar response, he hanged up. Then, setting the phone down, he sighed. _'This is getting more and more complicated,'_ he mused. _'Just… what am I supposed to think about all of this?'_

x

_'I'm a bit nervous,'_ Yugi thought to himself while waiting for Seto to pick him up. He was sitting on the store's counter, happy that he didn't have the store open on Saturdays. _'Even though I don't think I have any reason to. Seto didn't seem all that bothered by the whole thing - or maybe he did, but not disgusted anyway,'_ he sighed. _'Which is a good thing.'_ Even if he wasn't sure if he was gay or not, it was good that Seto didn't seem bothered by that possibility.

_'It was rather painful to remember that time, though,'_ he mused with a sad chuckle. _'I was so confused back then. With my other self, then there was Anzu - I never did quite figure out which one of us she liked better, me or my other self. And then there was Seto and the fading crush I had on him…'_ he shook his head. _'Thank gods my other self never found out about it. That would've been very awkward.'_

All he could hope for now was that Seto wouldn't get too uncomfortable with him. The feelings were long since gone and buried but knowing about them could make the other man uncomfortable. _'Stupid alcohol. I swore to keep that stuff to myself, but noo, I have to tell Seto of all people,'_ he chuckled, awkwardly shifting on the counter. _'Well, it would've been worse. I could've told Jonouchi ten years ago. That wouldn't have gone well at all.'_

Hearing the sound of a car driving to the front of the shop, Yugi glanced towards the door. Then he carefully slid down from the counter to the floor, quickly grasping his cane that had been leaning against the counter's edge. Walking up to the door, he could hear the car door being opened and closed. As he opened the store's door, Seto was already walking up to him.

"Hi," Yugi greeted the taller man a bit awkwardly.

"Hello," Seto answered calmly, quickly raking his eyes over him as if trying to assess Yugi's health. "Ready to go?" he then asked.

After closing the door, Yugi pulled on it experimentally to check that it had locked. Then he nodded. "Yeah," he said before following the taller man to Seto's expensive car. "You don't have work today?" he then asked, noticing that despite wearing a suit, Seto didn't have a tie.

"No, I don't work on Saturdays and Sundays," Seto answered as they sat to the car. "Mokuba made me promise that I wouldn't some time after I finished college. He thought I would end up overworking myself to death."

Yugi chuckled. "You probably would," he mused, carefully stretching his legs before pulling the car door shut and buckling the seat belt. Then, as Seto started the car again, he glanced at the taller man carefully. It didn't seem like Seto was angry or bothered. He was a little tense but it didn't seem like anything serious. Yugi relaxed a little. _'Doesn't seem like he's disturbed by me.'_

"Are we going to go to the same restaurant as last time?" Yugi asked after a moment of silence.

"Yes," Seto nodded, glancing at him. "The food there was decent, wasn't it?"

"It was good," Yugi nodded with a smile.

The car fell into silence again but it wasn't as awkward as it had been moments before. Soon enough they came to the restaurant. After they had left the car, Yugi expected them to find a table by themselves like they had the last time, but it seemed like Seto had reservations this time. At the sight of Seto, one of the waitresses stopped forward and then led them into a large private room. There were tables for about forty people in there, but no one else was in the room.

"Did you reserve this entire room for us?" Yugi asked with shock looking around in the large private area. It was probably meant for business luncheons and such.

"I did," the president of the Kaiba Corporation said, taking his seat. "I wanted privacy." He accepted the menus from the waitress who then left them alone. The taller man shook his head. "I had a feeling that we'd be talking about more or less private matters this time."

Yugi looked at him thoughtfully for a moment before sighing. _'Why do I have a feeling that this might end up being mighty uncomfortable?'_ he questioned to himself while taking one of the menus from Seto. "I didn't manage to settle the matter in phone, then?" he asked quietly. _'I was hoping that we could bury this thing. Apparently not.'_

Seto glanced at him before turning his attention to the menu. "In a way yes and in a way no. I just feel that unless we talk about it face to face it will, how did you put it, haunt us. There is also something I need you to… understand," he frowned at the menu, "about me."

Yugi blinked at the words before swallowing. _'Alright, I guess this is a bit more serious. I hope he won't be breaking up this friendship of ours,'_ he thought miserably. _'As short as it has been, I have enjoyed it more than I remember enjoying anything in the last four years…'_

Soon the waitress returned and they ordered. The silence reigned uncomfortably until the food was brought. Once they were left alone, Seto finally spoke. "This is making you uncomfortable," he said.

"A bit," Yugi admitted, taking his eating utensils and looking at his meal for a moment. Then he glanced up. "Does it bother you this much? That I liked you…"

The taller man chuckled awkwardly. "In a way I guess it does," he mused. "I can understand it in a certain manner - you did explain it after all, but at the same time… I'm not quite sure if you knew what you liked. And that bothers me."

"Huh?" Yugi glanced up.

Seto frowned. "Mokuba could stand me for as long as he could because he shared my past and knew what I went through - he knew how… I was made. Because of that he could accept some of my harsher edges but you don't know it. You don't know what I was truly like back then," the taller man shook his head. Then he snorted. "I guess it's your ignorance that bothers me with all this."

"My ignorance about you?" Yugi asked, tilting his head to the side. "I guess I didn't know at the time, but Mokuba told me something. Back in Death-T, he told me about how Gozaburo adopted you and then made you study really hard…"

"Did Mokuba tell you that Gozaburo literally drove me insane?" Seto cut in. The taller male shook his head, leaning back in his seat. To Yugi it looked like he wasn't even going to touch his food. "Mokuba knew but I'm not sure if he ever truly understood it. I don't think he wanted to understand it."

"Seto?" Yugi asked quietly. "That man did more than teach you harshly, didn't he?"

"Hm," the taller man frowned. "You know why I'm not afraid of death, or murder?" he asked then. When Yugi shook his head slowly, he snorted. "It's because I was taught not to be. I was taught that death is a natural part of the game. It's the winner's right to kill and loser's fate to die. Gozaburo took that teaching so far that when he lost to me, he jumped through the window and to his death." Seto shook his head. "I still sometimes expect… whenever I beat one of my rivals, some other corporation or game developer, I somehow expect them to commit suicide. And every time I lose or fail, I feel like I should. I can't help it. It's how I was taught."

Yugi stared at the other man in shock.

"It's just one of many things that still twists me, warps me," Seto smiled bitterly. "Back when your other self showed me the illusions he can create, that night full of illusionary death as a Duel Monster's card… it was meant as punishment but I took it as guidance. Pain was another acceptable thing in my life at the time, so I didn't even flinch because of it. Originally I created the holograms for that purpose too, to imitate the illusionary torture he forced upon me," he shook his head. "I didn't create the holograms to look or to sound. I created them to feel - to cause pain. To torture. And I never saw anything wrong with it."

"But you changed," Yugi interrupted. "When my other self broke your mind, you repaired yourself. You changed."

"It took six months in a coma and Mokuba's kidnapping for me to change," Seto shook his head. "You don't understand what I'm trying to explain. The moment I stepped into Gozaburo's house, I started to spiral down into insanity. When he died, and when I entered Domino high school, I was standing on the summit of my own madness," he frowned. "Some of those memories have turned a bit faded since then - probably thanks to the half year in a coma - but I still remember… how I used people around me."

The taller man raised his hand before Yugi could speak. "And I don't mean just that. I mean extorting. I kidnapped your grandfather for the Death-T, remember? That was nothing out of the ordinary for me. And do you know how I came about with the three Blue Eyes?" he snorted. "The first one I found in America. I forced it's owner to give the card away by paying the mafia to threaten him - I think they kidnapped his family during the whole thing. The second one I found in Germany. I drove it's owner into bankruptcy and then bought the card from him when he had no other way of surviving financially. And the one from Hong Kong… back then I had finished the first version of the hologram technology, I tested it on him. I heard he committed suicide later on."

Yugi stared at him wordlessly.

"I did all these things, and more…" Seto murmured. "And I never felt remorse. Hell, I still don't," he looked up to Yugi. "And that is what I want you to understand. I might've regained my sanity thanks to your other self, but this is still me. This is what I was for years, this is how I was raised." He frowned before shaking his head with snort. "That's what I want you to understand."

Yugi frowned. Then he tilted his head to the side. "Do you still kidnap people? Still drive them to suicide?" he asked.

Seto frowned. "No, of course not. But that's not the point."

"Then what is the point?" Yugi asked as calmly as he could.

"The point is that you wouldn't have ever liked me if you had known all of this," the taller man said almost angrily. "Your ignorance and naivety annoys me."

"So you're annoyed because I liked you without really knowing you?" Yugi asked slowly. "Seto, you're taking this way too seriously. It was a crush - ten years ago at that! It barely mattered then, why should it matter now? And as for what comes to this so called insanity of yours…" He snorted. "I've seen worse."

"What do you mean?" Seto asked with a frown. "Marik?"

"No, my other self," Yugi sighed, leaning his elbows against the table. It seemed like neither of them was going to eat anything. "When you met him, he was far saner than he was in the beginning," he frowned. "Did you hear about the more or less 'weird incidents' at our school?"

Seto blinked at that before getting a thoughtful look to his face. "I think I head about someone going more or less crazy in our school, but…"

Yugi nodded. "That was the first one, his name was Ushio. He beat up Jonouchi and Honda - and myself - in hopes of getting money from me," Yugi shook his head. "My other self challenged him to a game and when he cheated he drove him mad - Ushio's probably still in a mental institution."

The taller man gave him a look of confusion. Before he could ask anything, Yugi continued speaking. "That wasn't the only incident, there were several. My other self broke the ear drums of one senior at our school and lit another one on fire, he blinded a TV producer, electrified Jonouchi's former friends and finally burned a criminal to death," Yugi smiled sadly at the memory. "My other self did these things within the first weeks of living in me - he did these things through me. I originally wasn't aware of it, but later, when we started to communicate, I started to remember."

"When you started to communicate?" Seto asked.

"We didn't in the beginning, at first I wasn't even completely aware of him," Yugi shook his head. "I just thought I was having blackouts - I didn't tell anyone because I didn't want to end up in a hospital or institution or something, but at the time they scared the hell out of me." He smiled crookedly before sighing. "I calmed down after Death-T - when my other self grew strong enough for both of us be aware at the same time. I started to remember then too."

He closed his eyes, the memory of the nightmares vivid behind his eyelids, even after ten years. "When I remembered what he did, it to me seemed like I had done it myself. You don't really know madness until you've caused it yourself. And of course there was my other self himself. He… wasn't quite as sane as he seemed, not even in the end," he chuckled sadly. "Thousands of years locked away in shadows will leave anyone mad and sometimes he got lost in the memories. I like to think that I managed to help him with some of it, but in the end… he only found relief when he left me and passed on. Only then he found peace from his own madness - as did I."

After moment of silence, Yugi turned to look up to Seto. "I have embraced madness and called it my partner. So don't you dare call me ignorant."

The taller man looked at him for a moment before lowering his eyes for a moment. Then he glanced up. "How come you didn't go mad yourself, living with him in your body?" he then asked. "It was some form of possession, wasn't it?"

"In a way, but after the Death-T I was his willing host," Yugi smiled slightly before allowing it to fade. "I'm not quite sure how I remained sane actually. It was a myriad of things probably. Because I accepted him he didn't have to force me aside to take control and because I befriended him I helped him to regain sanity… and as corny as it sounds, my friends helped a lot. If they hadn't accepted me and him the way we were, I think we would've fallen to his madness."

Seto nodded thoughtfully. Then he sighed, raising his hand to brush his fingers over his eyes. "Okay, as not-ignorant as you are, did you get the point I was trying to deliver?"

"That I would've never liked you like that if I had known you?" Yugi asked with a crooked smile. "I got it." he snorted. _'I can't quite figure out the point behind your point, Seto, but I think I got it. And since it seems to mean so much to you, I'll remember it as well.'_

"Good," Seto nodded, looking down to his plate. The food had probably gotten long since cold.

Yugi chuckled, poking his food with his fork. "Well this is pretty much inedible," he said. "Thankfully this wonderfully horrible conversation has left me with no desire to eat."

"Me neither," Seto muttered, pushing his plate away. He was quiet for a moment before throwing a serious look in Yugi's direction. "That time in the Pegasus's castle, on that tower's rooftop… do you realise now why I stepped onto the edge?"

Yugi glanced up and then smiled sadly. "I think I do," he murmured. _'It makes it a bit more painful, though. He didn't step onto the ledge out of arrogance or even as a bluff. He really would've died if my other self had attacked - and at that point, he was perfectly fine with it…'_ he shook his head. "You play with high stakes, Seto. Too high."

The taller man smiled. "I know," he lowered his head slightly. "For Mokuba's sake I've tried to stop, but still… That grooming I went through might never really leave me. It's a part of me I have accepted and now live with it." The taller man glanced up before looking away again.

Yugi blinked. _'Oh, now I see,'_ he frowned before smiling sadly. _'It wasn't about the fact that I liked him without knowing this. It's about if I could like him despite knowing this. So far Mokuba - and Seto himself - have been the only two people who have known this and accepted it… Seto is asking me to be the third one. And now, without Mokuba around, Seto probably really needs it too. Whether he admits it or not.'_

With a chuckle the shopkeeper leaned back. "We are twisted people, Seto," he said, shaking his head before taking his cane and standing up slowly. "More or less, we're all twisted."

"Yugi?" the taller man looked at him worriedly.

"Shall we go somewhere else?" Yugi asked, raising his eyebrows. "Since we're obviously not eating, it's no use staying here. We could catch a movie or something." He tilted his head to the side. "How about it?"

Seto blinked before snorting. "Alright," he said, standing up as well. Yugi shot a bright smile at him and then followed him out of the private room. That time Seto paid for both of them even though they hadn't touched their food, and though Yugi said nothing to it, he understood the action for what it was.

x

This is madness! Sorry about not updating on Wednesday, but it can't be helped, I'm not writing this story as fast as I thougth I was. Thanks to all you nice people leaving nice comments. See you next Saturday.


	6. VI chapter

**VI chapter**

Yugi stared at the postcard not really knowing what to think of it. It wasn't just any old postcard you could buy from any convenience store - this was made out of photograph. The photograph had clearly been taken in some studio - with the expressionless background and the careful lighting and positioning… It wasn't bad looking photograph. But it was slightly unsettling.

_'Anzu's kid is already that big, huh?'_ Yugi mused, looking over the image of his oldest friend. Mazaki Anzu, who had long since grown out of the neck-length hair style, was sitting gracefully in the picture with three year old blonde child sitting just as gracefully in her lap. Anzu, with her hip-length hair and stylish clothing looked quite beautiful and the boy in her lap had obviously inherited his mother's face.

_'That kid will be one heart-breaker when he grows up.' _Yugi mused. After moment of staring at the picture, Yugi finally turned the postcard around to see what she had written to the other side.

"Dear Yugi," the message started. "Forgive me for not calling or writing to you, I have been really busy. The new show was quite a hit and I've been busy touring. This is me and my little Kyounin. He just turned three. With love, Anzu." Yugi reread the main message. Then he turned his eyes to the post script. "Ps. I heard that Mai is pregnant again. I thought you might want to know."

Frowning slightly, Yugi turned the postcard around again. Then he chuckled to himself before placing the card down to the shop's counter. _'Mai is pregnant, huh? That makes, what, their third?'_ he mused before sighing. _'Jonouchi's first child was born when I was still in hospital…'_

After a moment of staring at the photograph, Yugi took the postcard and hid it under the counter. He could later add it to the box of letters and postcards he had gotten from his friends over the years. As of late there had been less and less of them - and of course, Jonouchi had made no contact what so ever in four years. Neither had Honda, really. Anzu and Ryou were the ones who still occasionally remembered him, usually by short letter and postcards.

_'Last time Anzu wrote actual letter was during the time of her divorce, I think…'_ Yugi frowned. Anzu had married American man - who had been at the time her manager. It hadn't turned out well and year and half after Kyounin's birth, they had divorced. Anzu had never said it, not even in the surprisingly lengthy letter she had written probably just to get it all out of her chest, but Yugi suspected that the man had cheated on her. That was the last time she had written a letter - since then she had only been sending photograph postcards now and then.

Chuckling to himself, Yugi raised his right hand to look at the back of his palm. He remembered how, during the Death-T thing, Anzu had drawn a smiley to their hands with a marker. Yugi had had the lower left corner of the smile draw to the back of his hand whilst Anzu had taken the lower right. Jonouchi and Honda had taken the upper left and right corners. It had supposed to be a sign of their friendship.

"If one day, after school or otherwise, we drift apart and have hard, lonely times," Anzu had said at the time. "This sign will remind us of this time and how we were together here, as friends. The marker will fade away but the sign will always be in our hearts."

Yugi sighed. _'I wish I could still be so trusting,'_ he mused, lowering his hands. _'But I know that mark faded long ago. In more ways than one.'_ He closed his eyes for a moment before opening them with a smile. _'They're healthy and doing things they want to do, those… old friends of mine. That's all I need to know.'_

With that matter settled in his mind, he looked over the empty shop. Usually around this time of the day he would be in the backroom, making miniatures but right then he didn't feel like it. Instead he reached to grasp the cane and limped around the counter. Walking amongst the shelves and just looking at the games, he for a moment felt a strange sensation of… satisfaction.

_'Despite everything, I am content here,'_ he mused. _'Sure, it would've been fun to travel and enter more tournaments or something like that - chase after new adventures - but this… this isn't a bad way of life.'_ In the shop he met interesting individuals all the time. Young people who reminded him of himself, or the way he had used to be. Most of his most loyal customers even came from the very same school he had used to attend - and for some reason, seeing that old blue uniform, worn by new people… it was somehow gratifying.

_'It's not my place anymore. Running in with that wave, playing the games, challenging others to duels… It hasn't been my place for a long time,'_ Yugi smiled. _'My place is here where I can guide new spirits to games, where I can watch them soar. That, despite everything, isn't so bad.'_

Leaning onto the cane, he allowed his eyes wander over the store's shelves. Then he turned to look towards the shop's door when he heard the door chime. Seeing Kaiba Seto entering his store didn't surprise him at all anymore. Ever since their drinking night - and the abysmal lunch they had had the following Saturday - Seto's visits had turned more frequent. Yugi honestly didn't mind at all.

"Hello Seto," the shopkeeper greeted his old rival with a smile. Then he glanced at the clock that hung on the wall near the counter. "Are you after lunch this time?" he then asked.

"A break is more likely what I'm after," the taller man muttered with annoyed shake of his head while walking up to him. "Annoying day at the office," he explained when Yugi shot him a curious look. "My new assistant turned out to be an idiot - managed to pour her coffee all over her keyboard. Somehow managed to fry the entire computer with it. And apparently the idiot hadn't written my schedule anywhere elsewhere but on the computer, so now I have no knowledge what I'm supposed to do and when."

"Hm. That must be annoying," Yugi agreed, though he couldn't really relate. He had never had to do a schedule for himself - other than back when he was going through rehabilitation. He shook his head. "Do you want to eat here today?" he then asked. "I just had my groceries delivered this morning so I have enough in my fridge for the both of us."

Seto looked thoughtful for a moment before nodding. "I guess it won't kill me to try your cooking," he mused.

Yugi chuckled, limping up to the door to lock it for his lunch period. "I'm no gourmet cook but I think I can make something edible for us," he said before limping back towards the counter. He grabbed the postcard from underneath the table before leading Seto to the back room.

"What is that?" the taller man asked, glancing down to the card.

"Postcard from Anzu," Yugi answered, holding it up so that Seto could see the picture. He wasn't too surprised when the taller man snatched the thing from his fingers. He wasn't bothered by it, though, so he merely chuckled at the action. "I got it this morning."

"So they do still keep contact with you," the taller man murmured, looking at the photo thoughtfully. "That bimbo had a brat?"

Yugi snorted slightly at the words. Once upon a time hearing someone insult his oldest friend could've sent him into fit but… that was long ago. "Three years ago, yeah. His name is Kyounin," Yugi answered. When Seto read the back of the card and raised his eyebrows at the postscript, Yugi spoke before he could ask. "Mai and Jonouchi have two children - this will be the third."

"Oh really?" the president of the Kaiba Corporation smirked a little at that. "The mutt has a litter, huh?"

"They named the first child, a boy, Eiri and the girl was named Hime," Yugi said thoughtfully. "Honda and Shizuka have one child too - his name is Hiro, I think," he mused. "Ryou on other hand has an adopted child - I think the kid, Diana, is around twelve now. She was nine when Ryou adopted her."

Seto blinked at the words. "So all of your friends have either bred or tried to," he mused.

Yugi chuckled while opening the door to the storage room where the elevator was. "And you and I are still both childless bachelors," he mused. _'Though it's highly unlike I will ever be anything but a bachelor, not to even think about having children.'_ Shaking his head he glanced at Seto as they stepped into the elevator. "Have you ever thought about that? Having children, I mean."

The taller man gave him an incredulous look, before shaking his head. "Not really," he said. "I guess I always thought that with Mokuba there I'd never really need an heir. If or when I'll die, he'll be the one to take over the company…"

Yugi shook his head with amusement. _'An heir? Leave it to Seto to think children in such old fashioned and cold manner,'_ he mused and looked up as they arrived to the second floor. Stepping out to the corridor, Yugi sat down to the chair near the clothing racks. While taking off his shoes, Seto gave him a confused look before expression of understanding spreaded to his face as Yugi started to take off his boots.

"You wear socks on the prosthetics?" he then asked with surprise after Yugi had removed the first boot.

"Yeah," Yugi nodded, removing the sock as well before turning to the other boot. "The foot parts of the prosthetics are made of some sort of rubber - covering it with sock makes it easier to pull the boots on."

"And now you're taking the socks off?" Seto asked with confusion while taking off his coat and leaving it to the rack.

"Yeah. The rubber foot has more friction that a sock has," Yugi shrugged and hoisted himself back to his prosthetic feet with the help of the cane. "In the beginning I slipped few times because I wore socks."

"I see," Seto nodded, looking at his prosthetic feet thoughtfully. He could probably only see the rubber foot part, rest was covered by Yugi's leather pants. The tall man shook his head thoughtfully. "You know, if I didn't know better, I'd say that those are your real feet. The rubber parts look disturbingly like actual feet."

"That's how they were designed probably," Yugi shrugged. He shifted his legs a bit to demonstrate the bendiness of the rubber toes. "It probably has something to do with dynamics of walking too. Having toes, even if rubber ones, makes it easier maintain balance."

Seto nodded. "Makes sense."

Yugi chuckled and turned to head to the kitchen. The taller man followed him. As Seto sat down and Yugi headed to the fridge to see what he could make for them the taller man turned his attention to the post card again. "Why is Mazaki telling you about the mutt's upcoming kid?" he suddenly asked. "If I didn't know better, I'd say that she's just gossiping, but…"

Yugi shook his head, taking out some food items. "Jonouchi hasn't talked to me since the accident, really," he answered. "Honda neither. Mai sent me few letters, but she stopped year or two ago too."

Seto looked up to him. "I hope there is better reason for that than growing up and growing apart," he then said with a frown.

Yugi shook his head. "Mai had Eiri just around the time of my accident," he said. "They invited me to the christening, I think Jonouchi wanted me to be Eiri's godfather… but at that time I was barely able to move around in the wheelchair, not to even mention about travelling," he reached for a knife to open a packet of meat. "So I declined their offer as politely as I could. I didn't give them the reason why I couldn't go. They had had some rough times before that and they were so happy over Eiri's birth that I didn't want to bring their good mood down with my situation…" he sighed. "I didn't even tell that grandpa was dead until later - if I had, they would've come, if not for any other reason then to attend to the funeral. I didn't want them to; I didn't want them to see me the way I was."

Taking out a frying pan from the cupboard under the counter, Yugi set it down to the stove. "When I later told them that grandpa had died, Jonouchi… more or less lost it. We had a big fight on the phone and since then we haven't really spoken," he shook his head. "Honda stopped talking to me after that too - natural really. Jonouchi is Honda's best friend and brother in law, so…" he shrugged. "I only hear about them from Anzu these days."

Seto frowned as they fell into silence for a moment. "What do you mean, the mutt and his busty bitch had rough times?"

"They started a business together some time after I graduated from college," Yugi shrugged. "It was a cruiser ferry or something like that. They took a big loan for it and all - a very big - and for a while it looked like they would end up in huge debts."

"A… cruiser ferry?" Seto repeated slowly with disbelief.

Yugi chuckled at his reaction. "Yeah. I think the reasons behind it were nostalgic - I mean, Jonouchi and Mai did meet on the boat on the way to Pegasus's island, or just before entering the boat anyway," he answered before shaking his head. "They eventually got the business working and then they had Eiri. I think they're doing quite well with the cruiser business too - as far as I know, their cruisers are rather like casinos on water."

"Gambling, huh?" Seto snorted. "That seems more understandable than the whole ferry business."

"Mai used to be a hostess in casino once upon a time if memory serves and Jonouchi has always enjoyed games where money is involved," Yugi shrugged. "So I guess it does make sense. Honda and Shizuka might work in their company too, but I'm not completely sure. Anzu told me about two years ago that Honda had lost his job and that Jonouchi and Mai took them in… but the situation might've changed since."

"Do you regret loosing contact with them?" Seto asked thoughtfully.

"Of course I do," Yugi smiled over his shoulder. "They are my friends. Jonouchi was my best friend, Anzu was my oldest friend, I trusted Honda to watch for my back and Ryou was trustworthy and knowledgeable in his own right." He shrugged his shoulders. "Regret is natural part of life."

"That it is," Seto frowned and they fell quiet. After moment Yugi turned the radio on to alleviate the silence, not that it was too uncomfortable. He was already so adjusted to Seto's presence - and occasional silences during it - that they didn't bother him much.

It didn't take long for him to make the food. It was simple food really, fried meat with sauce and rice along with some vegetables he had in his fridge. With some spices thrown in it was good enough for him and he hoped that it was good enough for his guest as well. "Do you want juice or water to drink?" he asked while carrying the plates to the table.

"Water is fine," Seto said.

x

Yugi brought the other a glass of water before getting juice for himself. Seto felt slightly useless as he just sat and watched but for some reason he had a feeling that if he would sat up to help he would just get in the way. It was too late to help anyway, Yugi had already carried the food to the table. All they really needed was eating utensils now.

"Do you regret staying here?" Seto asked as Yugi turned to get them chopsticks. "In Domino, in this game shop… you had more options once, you still do even if they're more difficult to achieve," he leaned his chin to his knuckles, watching how Yugi limped back to the table and sat down. "Was there anything else you wanted to do?"

Yugi looked at him thoughtfully before handing him the chopsticks and leaning back in his seat. "I guess there were things I wanted to do that became too difficult with my accident… but in a way it's my own fault that I never got to do them. There was time for it, after college and before the accident there was time for me to do something but… I didn't," he turned to his food. "I guess I regret that. Dwindling here doing pretty much nothing when I could've done something."

"And if you got that choice now, what would you do?" Seto asked thoughtfully.

"Just travel probably," Yugi smiled. "See other places. I'm not even sure what places I would like to see. Just… other places. Places I haven't seen before."

"But the accident didn't turn that impossible," Seto frowned slightly. "It's not like people have to walk these days to travel. We have trains and airplanes and busses and cars…"

"Yes, but for me it all is a bit scary these days," Yugi smiled, shaking his head. "What if something happens? What if someone steals my wallet or bag or something? Like this I'm an easy prey. Or what if an accident happens, a fire or something like that? How could I run away?" he gathered some food to his chopsticks and brought it up to eat it. "If I had a friend to travel with, I suppose I wouldn't be so scared of it, but as things are…"

"Ah," Seto nodded, now understanding. When he thought about travel he thought about his private jets or the helicopters he owned or the cars he drove. Also he had small army of security to surround himself with if it was necessary. To him travelling wasn't just safe, it was so common that it was rather boring. To Yugi, who owned none of those things, travelling wasn't as simple.

"Are there things you regret?" Yugi asked after a moment of silence. "You probably have known your place in the world long before you finished school, but…"

Seto stopped at that and then thought about it. Regret? First thing that came to mind was Mokuba and the fight with him, but Yugi knew about that. Other than that he didn't really know. "I… regret not being able to… hmm…" he frowned, trying to search the right words. "I don't feel excitement anymore. In a way I regret that," he then said.

"Excitement?" Yugi raised his eyes with confusion.

Seto shook his head. "Ever since we stopped duelling and things changed to ordinary, I haven't felt awe or surprise," he said. "I've seen and I know too much to be awed by anything anymore and that in a way is regrettable. When we were young there was something shocking behind every corner and that made life interesting, but it hasn't been like that in very many years."

The shopkeeper thought about that and then nodded. "That's true," he agreed with slightly sad undertone. "You know why I stopped duelling originally?" he asked. When Seto just shook his head, Yugi smiled sadly. "Duelling stopped being thrilling after I played against my other self. That was the greatest duel of my life and I knew that there would never be a duel as great as that one, not for me," he turned to his food. "It's a bit heartbreaking. Those sorts of duels are supposed to happen at the end of one's life. I was only seventeen."

"It was end of his life," Seto pointed out.

"Yes, and that comforts me greatly, but the fact remains that that duel stripped me of the excitement of duelling," Yugi sighed. "It's like making a masterpiece, something so great that you know you can never do anything better. After that trying just seems futile."

"Giving up isn't like you, Yugi."

"It wasn't giving up, it was accepting the truth," Yugi shook his head before chuckling. "I've played against gods. How could mere mortals excite me anymore? It doesn't matter that much anymore I suppose," he then mused before glancing at Seto. "Was there ever anything else you wanted to do other than working in the Kaiba Corporation?"

The taller man raised his eyebrows at the question. "Not really," he then answered. "Ever since I was ten it has been all that I've known. Originally Kaiba Corporation was arms manufacturing corporation, though. Back then, back before I was the president, I wanted to change it. And I did, I changed it into what it is now - and that's enough of achievement for me to not want anything else."

"Kaiba Corporation manufactured arms?" Yugi seemed surprised. "I never knew that."

"I had that reputation buried when I took the helm of the corporation. People don't remember it these days," Seto shook his head, concentrating his attention to his food.

Yugi hummed thoughtfully. "Thank goodness you're more interested about games. I can't even wonder what you would be like if you manufactured weapons - other than scary as hell," he shuddered slightly. Then he stopped. "When you were being taught by your adoptive father…"

"I was taught the use of weapons, yes," Seto nodded. "I was even taught how to make them, among other things. There are parts of that training I'd rather forget - not that they haven't been useful, though. If I didn't know how to pilot a helicopter I would've never made it to Pegasus's island all those years ago, for example."

"And you learned all that before you were even in legal age to do anything like that," Yugi shook his head with wonder. "You really are a genius, aren't you?"

"I thought that had been evident for years now," Seto said with a small smirk.

Yugi blinked. "Damn it, I gave you another ego boost," he murmured with a chuckle.

Seto smiled to himself and continued to eat. _'Even though the excitement of our lives seems to have faded… there are still things to look forward to. Things to anticipate. To… appreciate,'_ he mused keeping his eyes in the food and not looking up to the shorter man even though he wanted to. _'The more time I spend with this guy, the more I anticipate it.'_

Despite everything Yugi knew about him, the shorter man was still laughing at him. The less than sane past, the things he knew and could do, Yugi now knew almost all of it. And didn't care. _'Even Mokuba cared,'_ Seto frowned slightly. _'He either demonstrated that by trying to bury the past, or by avoiding it. And when ever he tried to accept it, it twisted him too… In the end he couldn't accept it, and ended up running way - though that was my fault, wasn't it? Still is. I still can't accept that woman.'_

That was part of his training as well, part of his grooming. To look after one's self and one's interest… that had been integrated to his very core. That was in the end why he couldn't understand that woman, Miho, as anything other than gold digger who was using his brother. That was why he was still alone even at twenty seventh year of his life. Because he couldn't trust other people to look after his interests.

_'Other than Yugi,'_ he grudgingly thought, glancing at the other man who was just taking a sip of his juice. _'Unlike that blonde mutt and no doubt all his other friends, Yugi has never cared about money. Hell, he gave away the prize money of the __Duellist__Kingdom__ without probably a second thought. And this shop of his, he could no doubt enlarge it and gain bigger profits out of it, but he doesn't do it… probably doesn't want to.'_

"Have you ever wanted to be rich?" Seto asked after a while.

Yugi glanced up with surprise before chucking and shaking his head. "Not really. I've always had roof on top of my head and food in my table. That has always been all I needed," he said with slight amusement, leaning back in his chair. He looked around in the simple, small kitchen and smiled. "This is the house where I grew up - and I've never lacked anything I really needed. I never considered any other life for myself. I always knew I would always live in this house. And that was always what I wanted too." he hummed thoughtfully. "I've always known that I would eventually take over the game shop. It didn't happen quite how I expected it, but I did expect it."

"And you've never wanted another career, any other way of life?" Seto asked, looking around in the kitchen as well. It was such a simple room. At the mansion, Seto ate his meals either in his office or in the dining room. He never really ventured to the kitchen - why would he since he had a cook? But Yugi made the meals he ate and then ate them in the very same room where he made them. It was so crude compared to the way of life Seto was used to, but in the same time… it was somehow much more comfortable.

"Not really," Yugi chuckled. "Games have always been my priority and the shop has always been my future. With things secured like that, why should I want more? I'm content like this." He shook his head. "There's only so much wealth a person really needs to survive. The rest of it is just for showing off really."

Seto smirked at that. "I guess I'm showing off a lot then, huh?" he asked amusedly.

"All the time," Yugi nodded solemnly.

Seto chuckled in answer. _'The blonde mutt and Yugi's other friends annoyed me because I could see it in their eyes. Sometimes they were jealous of me. Yugi annoyed me the most because he never was,'_ he mused. _'Now it makes me able to enjoy his presence to this extent. It's amazing how bit of time changes perspectives.'_

"You've… for as long as I've known you, you've been the richest person I'm aware of," Yugi mused thoughtfully. "Did you ever want… simpler life?"

"Life like yours?" Seto asked, again looking around in the kitchen. "When I was being taught by Gozaburo there were often times when I missed the simple way life could be - I even missed the orphanage at times… but since then I haven't really thought about it. Occasionally I pitied people with life like yours, I compared their lives to mine and always knew that I lived better life," he snorted, lowering his eyes to his half eaten plate. "But… even after all that's been said and done, I'd rather spend time here… than at my mansion."

Yugi smiled to the words. "Well, I'd rather have you spend time here than having to spend my time alone," he admitted. "So you're welcome here any time."

Seto nodded to the words, feeling strangely comforted by the words. Then a sneaky thought invaded his mind. _'I never wanted that, never thought that, maybe I even detested that… but a relationship with a person like Yugi wouldn't be bad,'_ he frowned slightly even as he continuing to eat. _'He accepts me the way I am, doesn't fear or hate me, he laughs at me and… he doesn't care about my money, doesn't want it, isn't after it. Person like him…'_

Glancing up, his expression first turned thoughtful before he realised something. _'No. There is no "person like him". There is only him. Only he knows me like this and still acts like this. Only Yugi is like this with me.'_ The thought was both comforting and slightly startling.

There was silence during the rest of the meal but it wasn't uncomfortable. The soft music coming from the radio and the sound of them eating kept the silence from getting awkward. Eventually they had finished their meals. "Did you like it?" Yugi asked while sitting up to take his plate to the sink.

"It was decent," Seto answered, though he hadn't really thought about the food. It hadn't left any bad tastes to his mouth, so he supposed that it was good enough to be edible. With a shake of his head, Seto sat up and took his dishes to the sink as well. "Are you going to wash these now?" he asked awkwardly. _'Should I help?'_

"Just rinse them," Yugi shrugged, motioning at the dishwasher that was just little left from the sink. "I'll put them to the washer later."

As Seto did as asked, Yugi put the frying pan he had used to the sink as well, and cleaned the counter. Within few minutes the kitchen was surprisingly clean. _'He's not bad at cleaning after himself,'_ Seto mused. _'Though being like he is, he probably prefers that to having to hold extensive cleaning sessions.'_

"I should get back to the shop," Yugi mused. "There usually aren't many customers at this time of the day, but you never really know."

Seto nodded. "I should get back to work as well," he said. _'They should've fixed that idiot assistant computer by now. Or at least gotten her a new one.'_

They headed to the hall. While Yugi sat down to pull his socks and boots on, Seto eased his own shoes on and then pulled his coat on as well. Then he waited as Yugi finished fastening the boots. "Why do you wear boots?" he then asked. "Wouldn't shoes be easier to put on?"

"I wore shoes at one point. I ended up wearing boots because they help me with my balance," Yugi said. "Also with the boots I can be certain that no one sees the prosthetics."

Seto frowned a little at that. _'It still doesn't seem to fit Yugi's character to try and hide the amputation… but I guess I can understand. If not anything else, it would be awkward for him if people saw the prosthetics.'_ He shook his head and then, when Yugi was finished adjusting his pants over the boots, he offered his hand to pull the shorter man up. With a surprised blink Yugi accepted the hand and then used Seto as support to get to his feet.

"Thanks," the shorter male smiled to him briefly before they stepped to the elevator.

While waiting for it to descend to the first floor, Seto looked at Yugi thoughtfully. _'He's not bad looking,'_ he mused in the privacy of his mind. _'His eyes are a bit too big and his hair really is ridiculous, but… he's not bad looking. Not at all.'_ Then the president of the Kaiba Corporation frowned. _'And why would that matter? Why do I care?'_

Shaking his head Seto looked up as the elevator halted. Together he and Yugi stepped out. Seto knew that he probably should've already gotten going, there were things for him to do at the office… but he dwindled for a moment. When Yugi reached the door between the shop and the backroom, he leaned over Yugi and pressed his palm against the door before Yugi could open it.

"Seto?" Yugi asked with confusion, glancing up to him.

The taller man frowned, slightly confused about his own thoughts. _'There is no "person like Yugi", there is only Yugi,'_ he repeated his earlier thoughts, looking down to the shorter man's eyes. All he had told to Yugi and the way the shorter male had accepted it all flashed through his mind and the frown darkened. _'There is only Yugi,'_ he thought again.

"Seto, what…?" Yugi's question trailed away when the taller man touched his chin, tilting his head upwards. "Oh," he murmured with surprise.

_'He liked me once. It should be fine,'_ Seto thought, lowering his head. When Yugi didn't pull away, he pressed his lips against the shorter man's lips.

x

Yugi inhaled sharply through his nose at the feel of Seto's lips pressing against his own. Not quite sure what to do or how to react, he remained still, staring at the other man's ice cold eyes with widened eyes. The kiss, though soft and warm, was stiff and brief. When Seto pulled back there was a look of disappointment in his eyes.

"What was that?" Yugi asked with confusion, clutching onto the handle of his cane with white knuckles, trying not to fall over. The surprise had left his lone knee feeling rather shaky and right then falling over did not seem like a good idea.

"A test," the taller man closed his eyes before shaking his head. "Could you forget I just did that?" he then asked, opening his eyes with a frown. There was a slightly troubled look on his eyes "I promise I will not do something like that again."

When Seto moved to grasp the door's handle, Yugi shifted to his way, preventing him from opening the door. "Test of what?" he asked sharply though he was more confused than insulted or disturbed. When the other man didn't seem like he was about to answer, the shorter man frowned. "You can't just kiss me out of the blue and expect me to forget it. What were you testing, Seto? My reaction?"

"No," the president of the Kaiba Corp shook his head with a frown. "I think it's more about my reaction than yours… Just forget it, alright Yugi?"

Yugi frowned. _'His reaction?'_ he asked silently with confusion, looking up to the taller man's eyes hoping to find answers. _'Was he hoping that he would react somehow by kissing me? By the looks of it he wasn't too satisfied with result. Though… as a kiss that was far from being satisfying.'_ Narrowing his eyes, Yugi eased his hold on the cane, leaning onto the door instead. "Were you hoping that you'd like it? Or that you wouldn't?" he asked, sliding his fingers from the cane's handle to the shaft.

Seto looked troubled, glancing away before sighing. "I guess I was hoping that I would… react somehow," he said, looking slightly embarrassed. "I'm… I apologise for -"

Yugi frowned at the words. _'React?'_ he wondered. "Kiss that bad wouldn't make anyone react," he said. With a flick of his wrist he shifted the cane in his hand so that he was holding it from the middle. Then, hooking the handle easily behind the taller man's neck, Yugi tugged him down. Seto made a muffled sound of surprise as Yugi closed his eyes and actually kissed the other man. It wasn't like he had all that much experience with kissing, but he certainly knew better than to accept the previous contact as a kiss. It had been far too stiff to be a proper kiss.

_'If you want a reaction, you need a reaction worthy kiss,' _Yugi thought, tilting his head a bit to the side. Then he carefully brushed his lips over the other man's unresponsive ones. Seto's lips fell slightly open - probably because of surprise - but it made the kiss slightly deeper, slightly easier. It also added a slightly wet quality to the kiss that made Yugi shiver slightly even as he gently nibbled the taller man's lower lip with his own lips. The shudder that ran through the other man was a definite reaction.

_'This… this should be enough. That should've made him respond somehow,'_ the shorter man thought a bit shakily. "There," he said, pulling back from the other's lips. When he looked up to Seto's eyes, he had the startling pleasure of seeing them wide with shock. He grinned weakly. "If you're going to kiss someone, at least do it properly," Yugi said embarrassedly, releasing his cane's hold from the other man's neck. "So. Reaction?"

"Pure utter shock," Seto answered with blunt honesty, his eyes still wide. There was a slight dusting of red on his cheek that made the look of shock on his face seem even more exposed somehow. "I… I think I should go."

_'Oh… that's not good.'_ Holding his hand over the door's handle before Seto could reach for it, Yugi frowned. "Did I ruin it?" he then asked worriedly. _'Our friendship, did I ruin it? Is he going to leave now and never come back again?'_

"I honestly don't know," Seto swallowed. He was still looking at the shorter man as if Yugi had grown another head. Then the taller man shook his head, looking away. "I… need to think about this."

Yugi frowned. _'That's so not good,'_ he thought. He hesitated for a moment before clumsily stepping aside. Seto immediately opened the door and stepped out of the backroom, leaving worried and confused Yugi alone. _'Damn it,'_ the shopkeeper thought, his hand shaking slightly as he slid the cane down so that he could hold onto the handle again. _'Damn it!'_

"Seto!" he called to the shop side. His knuckles were white as he clutched onto the handle of his cane and his knee still felt shaky, but he stood as still as he could, spoke as steadily as he was able. "If I'll make you dinner on Friday, will you come?"

There was a silence. "I'll think about it," the other man then answered, the sound of door opening and closing following the words.

_'Damn it!'_ Yugi thought again, leaning heavily doorframe and raising a shaky hand to his face. Then, trying not to tremble as much as he did, he ran his hand through his hair. _'Why did he kiss me? Why did I kiss him like that? Damn it…'_ after moment of cursing himself, Yugi glanced to the shop side with troubled look on his face. _'Damn it. I got caught in the mood… and now I scared him away. I shouldn't have done that. Damn it. I… shouldn't have done that.'_

Hissing at himself, Yugi limped out of the back room. Despite not liking the idea at all, he knew he needed to open the shop for customers. While opening the lock of the front door, he grimaced with irritation. But underneath the annoyance he was scared witless - and the sight of Seto's car driving away just made it worse. What if Seto wouldn't come back? _'What if I ruined everything?'_

x

The road of life is indeed a bumpy one. Thank you all for your nice reviews. 'till next Saturday.


	7. VII chapter

**VII chapter**

In attempt to get his mind to stay on something other than Yugi, Seto was browsing through the older files on his computer and projects his company had worked with but then abandoned for reason or another. Even though he found some of the uncompleted projects interesting and had occasionally revived some of them, this time it didn't work. His mind strayed away from the subject and back to the petite shop keeper. And to the kiss Yugi had given him.

"Damn it," he murmured, brushing his hand over his eyes before forcing his concentration back to the computer screen. Ever since that time in Yugi's house, ever since that stupid, shocking… wonderful incident that had happened in the Turtle shop's back room, Seto had had difficulties trying to concentrate onto anything. His workers all thought that he was coming down with something because of it. He thought so too, in a way. He thought he was coming down with slight bout of insanity.

_'Damn it,'_ he thought closing his eyes for a moment. Immediately he remembered the worried look Yugi had given him - which was closely followed with the memory of the way Yugi had kissed him. And it had been quite a kiss. The memory of how Yugi had nibbled on his lower lip still made Seto's face flush. He had hoped for a reaction but he had definitely not been prepared for the side effects.

_'What the hell am I supposed to do about this?'_ he thought, rubbing his temple with his finger tips in hopes of alleviating his upcoming headache. _'As I see it there's two ways of proceeding from here. I can either go with it and start relationship with Yugi. Since he kissed me like that I suspect he isn't against the thought, and taking his past attraction to me in consideration as well makes that option possible. Or I can back down and remain friends with Yugi - but this has probably changed everything. Could we go back to the way we were after this…?'_

Shaking his head he looked up to the computer screen and opened another folder. Files and images opened before his eyes, telling the tale of another project that hadn't survived long enough to be completed. _'To think he can kiss like that. To think he'd actually kiss ME like that,'_ Seto frowned while opening one picture and staring it without actually seeing it. _'Though seeing that he has liked me in past… it's not that unbelievable, but… to think he actually reacted my pathetic attempt of a kiss like that.'_

On its own his hand lowered from his temple to his lips, which still seemed to burn with the memory of the kiss. _'I didn't even know that a kiss could feel like that,'_ he thought with embarrassment. _'It felt… good.'_ He frowned at the thought. The kiss had felt good. Possibly better than any other physical contact he had ever had - even topping the hugs he had gotten from Mokuba in the past.

_'Though I wonder if it's normal to have your heart beat that hard. It felt like it was coming out of my chest,'_ the man snorted a little at the thought. On top of the initial reaction, he had been constantly overcome with the memory of the kiss all day - and the following days as well. In most inconvenient times he remembered the feel of the cane's handle behind his neck and Yugi's soft, demanding lips on his… His constant reddening had probably led into his workers' belief that he was sick.

_'The kiss was… pleasant. Much more pleasant than I anticipated… but what am I supposed to do with this?'_ he sighed and leaned back in his chair. _'To proceed or to pull back? And how would it turn out if I would proceed with this, if I would attempt a relationship with Yugi of all people…'_

He had always disliked the thought of having a relationship. He had seen what it seemed to do people. First they got stupid with it and acted as if the world revolved around their other. Then they got chained up in the relationship and everything they did they had to do with the other in mind. Seto was tired with hearing "I need to talk with my partner about this", every time he needed one of his workers work abroad. And Mokuba took the cake - he was using his money to pay off that woman's debts for heaven's sake!

_'But… would it really be like that with Yugi?'_ he frowned. Yugi had his own job and it seemed like he was doing well for himself. Yugi also had his own house and his own life as lonely as it seemed to be. But there were other things as well. _'If we would be in relationship, would Yugi's opinions start controlling my actions?'_

Seto stopped to think about it. Yugi had always been more or less understanding with him but especially so since they had met again. Aside from small things such as dinner or the movie in the abysmal lunch after their drinking night, Yugi hadn't really asked anything from him. Sure, there was the ongoing joke, Yugi asking Seto to pay for his dinner, but that was nothing serious. Nothing like paying debts. Seto was fairly confident that Yugi would never ask for that sort of money either.

_'Not only is he doing well with the shop, but he's also rather independent these days. If he can do it by himself, he won't ask for help. Hell, even when he probably can't do it by himself, he still won't ask for help. His legs are the proof of that,'_ Seto frowned.

As far as finances came, Yugi would be undemanding partner. He wouldn't be high maintenance like some of women that usually accompanied rich men like Seto. And Seto had seen lots of them - mistresses and companions hanging from the arms of rich men, women wearing expensive jewellery and probably equally expensive clothing. Yugi, being male and rather humble man at that, would never be like that. _'He would laugh himself silly if someone would try to give him pearls,'_ Seto snorted at the thought.

But despite being easy going, Yugi also was very headstrong. He had strength of will Seto knew to be stronger than his own. Yugi had never deployed like he did, but there was a reason why Yugi had became the king of games and it was only partially because of his duelling skills. Unwillingness to give up and to back down… That made Yugi strong. That also made him difficult to handle at times.

_'So far we haven't had any clashing opinions. He accepts mine and just laughs if they go against his opinions. But should there be a serious matter where our opinions go against each other…'_ Seto frowned. Should something like that happen, those battles would be hard and Seto had no guarantee that he would win them. Yugi wasn't ruthless or cruel, but he was a winner. He had been a winner for as long as Seto had known him, whether he had accepted it or not.

_'__Battle__ of minds with him would not be pleasant,'_ Seto mused worriedly. _'But so far he has been mindful of my opinions. Even if he has disagreed with me, he hadn't fought me. Like with the subject of Mokuba and that woman - I know he disagrees with me but other than asking few sharp questions he hasn't even tried to make his opinion clear.'_

Yugi had never had any affection towards spotlights, that might be why he didn't bother making his voice heard. And as far as Seto had known him, Yugi had been accepting about people - to the point it was dangerous for him. _'Naïve little King of Games. Not so naïve anymore though.'_

Shaking his head Seto turned his eyes to the computer again for another attempt to steer his mind away from Mutou Yugi. Closing the picture and the folder he had opened earlier, he opened another folder to look through another project, this one named as Nerobot. _'I enjoy Yugi's company, as much is true. He has interesting opinions and even if the conversation is boring it's still pleasant. It's… much more pleasant being in his company than being alone,'_ Seto mused while opening another picture, glancing through another design. _'But could I stand that company in that manner? To be in relationship with him?'_

As much as he did enjoy Yugi's company, he also enjoyed privacy. Working alone like this was when he worked best - and usually it happened at his home office. Would he lose that if he would be in relationship? _'I've never thought to ask if Yugi enjoys privacy. He's more open about enjoying company, though. And he has always been in someone's company - only times I've seen him be really alone was when it wasn't actually him but that other self of his.'_ But Yugi had been alone for years now. That should change person's likes and dislikes concerning such things - for better or for worse.

_'And what the hell is this supposed to be?'_ Seto asked from himself, frowning at the project design. _'Nerve signal controlled robotics? What the hell is CNS-receiver? Who the hell came up with this project?'_ opening the project plans, Seto raised his eyebrows with surprise. _'Gozaburo?'_

Nerobot was apparently a file of one of the military projects Seto had saved when he had been changing Kaiba Corporation's direction from arms manufacturing to game manufacturing. Nerobot was supposed to be unmanned military device that could be controlled from the distance by person's actual nerve impulses. So when the controller would move his arm, the Nerobot device would move its arm as well in reaction to the nerve impulse-data transmitted from the controller to the machine…

Seto blinked. _'I see why I saved this project. That's an interesting idea.'_ If he could create a robot, a fighting robot for example, that would mimic it's controller's every move down to the movement of their fingers… then people could have very realistic fights without actually fighting themselves. With visual interface, the robots could be fighting in one place and the controllers could be anywhere. _'And I see why I never proceeded with it.'_ The idea had too many possible military applications.

Leaning back, Seto hummed. Though the idea was interesting, his thoughts soon started to stray back to Yugi. _'It's Friday today. He asked me if I would come if he would make dinner for me…'_ Turning his eyes to his wrist watch he frowned. _'We usually eat dinner around five so I have two hours until then…'_ after moment of thinking he sighed. _'Should I go? If I don't then… everything might be ruined then, it will be unsalvageable then. If I don't go it will mean the end for the possibility of a relationship - and probably the end of our friendship as well… and I don't want that. But if I go, it will no doubt get difficult and complicated…'_

Slumping heavily against the backrest of his chair, he stared at the computer screen. Automated sequence of images flashed through the screen, visually explaining the functions of the Nerobot. _'I wonder if Yugi cooks his dinners on the wheelchair or by standing on the prosthetics…'_

Seto blinked at the images flashing through his computer's screen. In 3-D animation the person controlling the machine and the Nerobot moved in perfect unison. _'What…?'_ he thought slowly, his eyes sharpening as he stared at the animation. Then he sat up straighter as an idea crash landed to his head. _'That's it!'_

x

Yugi's hands seemed to work on their own, chopping the vegetables for a salad as he leaned heavily against the counter. He had been so worried and nervous all day that he had forgotten to take the prosthetics off when he had gotten upstairs after work. Now it was too late for him to stop to take them off - he needed to make the dinner. The dinner for him and Seto - whether Seto would come or not.

_'Stupid Yugi,'_ he thought for the hundredth time while easily slicing the pepper in half and starting to pick the seeds from inside it. _'I shouldn't have kissed him, I shouldn't have done that. He probably kissed me to just to see if he was gay or something, heck, it probably had nothing to do with me in the first place.'_ He threw the seeds into the trash. _'Why would he kiss me anyway? I'm a cripple for gods' sakes!'_

Starting to slice the pepper into even pieces, he frowned. _'Stupid of me. Why did I kiss him anyway? Just because he kissed me? Idiot! I should've just settled with forgetting it ever happened!'_ Once the slices were done, he threw them to the salad and started to mix them into it. _'If he's completely and purely straight, then… kiss like that could easily make a straight person disgusted. What if he… what if he won't come back? What if he doesn't want anything to do with me?'_

Taking the cane, he carried the glass salad bowl to the table. He had already set it up, it was only waiting for the food and for the eaters. Turning back to the counter, he turned to check on the food. It was simple dinner, fried rice and chicken with some steamed vegetables - plus the salad he had made. He had forced himself to keep the dinner simple, forced him to believe that it was no different from any other dinner he had made. Except it was.

After checking that the food wasn't burning, Yugi sighed, running his shaky hand through his hair. Up until now he had managed to maintain slightest hope, hold onto the hint of optimism. It was now fading fast as the time ran out. _'What will I do of he doesn't come?'_ he asked himself hopelessly. _'Go back to the way things were before? Back to that lonely life of never really doing anything, just killing time in hopes that something will happen?'_

Because Seto had reappeared to his life, it had gotten a slightest meaning lately. He had had something to look forward to. Dinners and such with the other man had very quickly become the highlights of his weeks. _'I already got adjusted to having him around now and then, I already got used to having a friend again…'_ Yugi swallowed. He didn't know if he could bear to have that taken away again. And he definitely didn't dare to hope for something more. _'Stupid… why did I have to kiss him? I'm an idiot!'_

All he really could hope right now that Seto would come and they could work the whole mess out. _'Of course, it probably won't be the same if he comes, but if we could just work around the whole mess, to move past it… even pretend it never happened. I would be satisfied with just that, if we just could…'_ he sighed, shifting the food around in the frying pan with a spatula. _'If only he will come today.'_

Almost against his will he glanced at the clock. It was almost five. With a swallow he turned his eyes back to the stove before turning the temperature down. The food was done anyway. All he needed to do now was to keep it warm and wait. With a heavy sigh, he limped to the table and sat down to do just that.

Loneliness was nothing new to him. Even when his friends had left it had been nothing new - he had known loneliness long before he had even been in school. It had always been something he knew but he had never been that good at handling it. Having someone around, even if briefly, was preferable to that. _'I almost got adjusted to it in these past four years. No, I did get adjusted to it. But when Seto showed up, when he started spending time here… I got adjusted to that,'_ Yugi thought with slight desperation, leaning his elbows against the table and clasping his hands to keep them from shaking. _'Being alone again after that… I don't want that.'_

On top of that, Yugi had enjoyed Seto's company specifically. He was rather sure that even if Anzu or Jonouchi or his other old friends had come back, he probably wouldn't have been able to enjoy their presence as much as he enjoyed Seto's. _'Maybe it's the similarities between our situations, or maybe we just fit, but I get along with him so well now. In a way I get along with him better than I ever got along with Jonouchi or Anzu - I'm able to… be honest with him.'_

Time trickled by and Yugi stared the clock as the minutes passed. _'If he doesn't come…'_ he thought with frown. _'If he won't show up…_' he swallowed and lowered his eyes._ 'I'll wait. I'll wait for half an hour and then… then I'll eat.'_

Five minutes passed. Then ten. And then fifteen. The last of his hopes fading quickly, Yugi leaned his forehead to his palms. _'I should've known,'_ he thought brokenly, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. As he slowly exhaled it, he tried to relax a little. It was no use being tense anymore. _'Stupid of me to be hopeful. Stupid of me to think that -'_

His thought was cut by a buzzing sound. Slowly he raised his head, not quite registering what he was hearing. Then, as he looked up, he realised. _'The door bell…'_ he thought numbly, automatically reaching for his cane and slowly getting to his feet. Before he had even registered getting up, he was already at the elevator and going down.

When he saw Seto standing behind the store's door, waiting to be let in, he honestly didn't know what to think. _'He came,'_ he wondered as he numbly limped to the door and opened it. "You came," he repeated the thought aloud once the door was open.

"I came," the taller man agreed, looking a bit embarrassed. He raised his hand, showing a bottle of brandy he was holding. "I also brought this. Since it is Friday."

Yugi blinked slowly at the words. _'Since it is Friday? Wait, the last time, when he brought the bottle last time… he did do it because of what I told him…'_ the thought left him slightly light headed before he shook his head. _'Doesn't matter. He's here now. That matters.'_

Leaning onto the doorframe, Yugi hit the taller man to the knee with his cane. As the other man gave him outraged look, Yugi just grinned back. "You're late," he said accusingly. Turning away he motioned the taller man to follow him. "The food's waiting. Lock the door." As Seto did as asked, Yugi secretly heaved out a heavy sigh of relief. _'By gods he made me worry but at least he's here.'_

"I'm sorry, I got a bit caught up with new project idea," Seto said, quickly following him. The taller man glanced at him. "You still have the prosthetics on," he noted.

"It hasn't been that long since I went up," Yugi said. _'Just hour and half.'_ He shook his head. "I started to make food right away so I didn't have the time to take them off, I guess. I can take them off later."

"Aren't your legs tired?" the taller man asked with a frown.

"It's nothing I can't handle," Yugi promised with slight smile. _'Okay, that was a good sign,'_ he thought with relief while leading Seto to the elevator. Then he looked down to the bottle Seto was carrying. "No ice bucket this time?" he asked with slight smile.

"I'm afraid I forgot it," Seto said calmly. Then he frowned. "Damn it, I drove here on my own car," he then murmured.

"Huh?" Yugi glanced at him with confusion.

"Never mind," the taller man made a dismissive motion with his hand. "I was so busy with work that I didn't even think to call a driver. I'll just… I'll just call a cab later."

"Oh," the shorter man nodded. _'He came with his own car. If we open the bottle he won't be able to drive,'_ he mused. "You can't call your driver?" he then asked.

"I need a driver so rarely that when I do I need to make him aware of it early enough," Seto grimaced with annoyance. "Otherwise he might have other plans - he works as driver for some of my workers as well, you see. Usually at this time of the day, unless told otherwise, he has already quit for the day."

Yugi blinked. "And why not call him now and pay him for over time?" he asked curiously, more to hear Seto's response than actual curiosity about the subject.

"The guy has a family, his wife just had a child," the taller man shook his head. "I don't want to call him away from his family unless I really have to. He'll whine about it later on, no doubt. I can just as easily call a cab."

Yugi hummed with wonder. _'Interesting. I wouldn't have thought that Seto actually cared about something like that,'_ he mused and then looked up as the elevator came to the second floor. _'Though Seto using a cab… that's just wrong. I don't think he has ever used a cab. Besides I doubt cab drivers have same decency as his private driver might have. These days something like Seto taking a common cab would interest the tabloids and the cab driver might go to the papers just in hopes for cash…'_

Shaking his head Yugi stepped out of the elevator and then waited as the other man undressed his shoes and coat. "Is it safe? Someone like you taking a cab, I mean?"

"Who knows," Seto shrugged and straightened his back. He held the brandy bottle up. "Could we put this into your fridge?" he asked. "I prefer my brandy cold."

"Sure," Yugi nodded, turning to head to the kitchen. "I should have some ice in the freezer, too." He led the taller man to the kitchen where the scent of the food assaulted them. While Seto peered over him to see what he had made, Yugi opened the fridge. "Give me the bottle," he said and after Seto had handed it to him, he placed it into the fridge.

"Fried rice and chicken?" Seto asked curiously.

"And some steamed vegetables and salad is on the table," Yugi nodded. He turned the stove off before glancing at the other man. "Could you lift this thing to the table while I get us something to drink?" he asked, pointing at the frying pan. "There's holder on the table for the frying pan."

"Hm," the taller man nodded and took the frying pan. While Yugi took a pitcher and filled it with water, Seto lifted the frying pan to the table. Then the taller man sat down as Yugi carried the water pitcher to the table and sat down himself.

_'Is this how it's going to be,'_ he wondered while motioning Seto to take food first. _'Are we just going to act like nothing happened? Well… it's preferable to him not coming here at all, I guess.'_ After the other man had taken his share, Yugi took some food for himself. He had been so nervous all day that he had barely eaten, but he suspected that even so he wouldn't be able to eat much. _'This is awkward,'_ he mused while taking his chopsticks. _'It's nice sort of awkward but it's still awkward.'_

"About the… last time," Seto suddenly spoke startling Yugi out of his thoughts. "Why did you kiss me?"

"You kissed me first," the shorter man answered after moment of thought.

"I know and I know why I did it, but why did you -"

"No, that's it," Yugi shook his head awkwardly. "I kissed you because you kissed me first," he looked down to the food and smiled a little. "I didn't really think about it. You kissed me first, so I thought… why not return the favour, since you had started it." He chuckled. "A bit childish reaction I guess. Besides, you wanted a reaction and honestly the first kiss wouldn't make anyone react."

Seto blinked at him before frowning. "That's it, huh?" he murmured, leaning back in his seat and absently clicking the chopsticks together.

"What do you mean, that's it?" Yugi looked up to him, his eyes widening slightly as he saw the other man's frown. "Were you hoping that I'd like you again?" seeing a flash of something in the other man's eyes, Yugi chuckled. "Seto, I've long since grown past the period of… liking people. I do like you, but you can't expect me to have a crush on you. I'm not a teenager."

"I see," the taller man frowned at his plate as if it had done something against him.

Yugi smiled to him, reaching out to touch his hand before he could pull too deeply into his shell. "If you want to have that sort of relationship with me then just say so, and we'll try it," he said, his smile broadening at the way the other man's eyes widened. "I do like you, Seto. I'm not against becoming more than friends with you, if that is what you'd like."

The taller man stared at him with surprise for a moment, before looking down to their hands. Then he coughed awkwardly. "You're not against it," he then said with a frown before pulling his hand away. "I think I need more than that."

Yugi blinked. _'Do I seriously need to talk sweetly to this man, to Kaiba Seto of all people?'_ he wondered with mild shock. Then he chuckled. "I guess you didn't quite realise what I meant. I'm not against it, therefore I'm in favour of it," he tilted his head to the side snapping his chopsticks absently together. "I would be against it if I thought it had no chances of success. I mean it when I say that I do like you. Since you stepped into my shop to sell those consoles, my life has been… less lonely. And I like that. I like that a lot."

Seto frowned at him, his dedication slightly wavering but still there. "And would things be like that if your friends were there, if you weren't so lonely?"

Yugi leaned back in his chair and shook his head. "They aren't here. You are. And that means more than possibilities, more than ifs," he smiled. "If you want to be with me, Seto, then I will be with you. There won't be ifs there and there won't be maybes. I can't have uncertainties in my life."

_'I'm actually trying to convince Kaiba Seto that I want to have romantic relationship with him…?'_ Yugi mused as the taller man gave him a thoughtful look. _'Well it looks more like he wants it but isn't certain if I want it as much as he does. Huh. I guess that test of his was if he reacted to me then. It was about me… but…'_

"But," Yugi frowned. "If you want this you need to realise the limitations. I'm handicapped, and that will always make things a bit difficult. Despite everything, I'm not as capable as most people are," he rubbed his hand over his left thigh. _'Because of these legs of mine I have given up on ever having a relationship like that. Even if Seto knows about them, he needs to realise that if… if we do this, they won't be just my problem. Their limitations might start getting his way too.'_

x

Seto couldn't help it. He snorted at Yugi's words. _'Not as capable? Is he joking?'_ he wondered before shaking his head. "You are far more capable than anyone I've ever known," Seto said with crooked smirk.

"I'm serious," Yugi frowned at him.

"So am I," Seto nodded. _'This man goes through horrible accident, loses both of his legs and still manages to stand up - and he does it all by himself. He can't actually think that he's not as capable as most,'_ he thought before leaning back a little. _'Foolish man, not knowing his own strength. The same stubbornness that makes me wary of him makes him strong - and he doesn't even realise it.'_

Yugi shook his head with a sigh. "Have you ever been in serious relationship, Seto?" he then asked. "This sort of relationship, I mean."

"Can't say that I have," Seto grimaced. _'I've never even considered having this sort of relationship. There has never been a person I would be able to handle long enough to actually have with them. Not to mention about trusting them.'_

"Neither have I, but even I understand that you will have to accept not only the good things about your partner, but the bad things as well," Yugi shook his head. "My legs are part of me and their limitations often rule my life. And if you want to have a relationship with me you will have to accept my limitations as well. Otherwise it won't go anywhere, this relationship thing."

Seto frowned. "Alright, I understand that. The legs are part of you and with these sorts of things you take all or nothing. I get it. If you can live with what ever so called limitations yours legs have, then I can as well," he promised. _'And if I can't, well… I'll just work something to get rid of the limitation.'_

Yugi looked at him seriously before sighing and nodding. "Good," he said, looking down to his food before gathering some rice to his chopsticks. "I guess now the question remains… do you want it?"

Seto looked over the shorter man. His lips tingled at the sight of how Yugi opened his mouth to take the food from his chopsticks. _'There isn't nor will there ever be a person like Yugi,'_ he thought. "There are worse people I could have relationship with," he then said with slight smirk.

Yugi glanced at him before chuckling. "Alright then," he said, turning his attention to the food with a small smile. "Alright."

They finished the rest of the food in comfortable, thoughtful silence. After finishing Yugi put the dishes to the sink before taking ice cube mould from the freezer. When, as Seto took the bottle from the fridge, he took glasses for them both. "How many ice cubes?" he asked from the taller man while Seto opened the bottle.

"Two," Seto answered and with a nod Yugi added the ice cubes. Not pouring the brandy yet, Seto took his glass. "Shall we go to the living room?" he then asked, raking his eyes over Yugi's form. _'Oh yeah, he still has the prosthetics on…'_ he coughed. "Do you want to take your legs off?"

Yugi snorted at the words, taking his glass to his left hand before grasping his cane with his right. "It sounds ridiculous when you say it like that," he mused before limping toward the living room. "But I guess I could. I've had them on about nine hours already." He shot amused looked at the other man. "Though you just want to see how they come off, don't you?"

"I won't deny my curiosity," Seto answered calmly while following the shorter man. Yugi's wheelchair was in the living room sitting beside the couch. "You put them on and take them off in the living room?" the taller man asked curiously. Two times he had seen the prosthetics sitting on the couch and now the chair was there.

"Yeah," Yugi answered, setting his glass down on the coffee table and sitting down to the couch. He set his cane aside and straightened his legs. "I don't put them on immediately after waking up in the morning and I've gotten adjusted to doing it in the living room. More space and fewer things to bang my head against if I happen to put them on incorrectly and fall down." The shorter man chuckled and looked up. "You can help me with this."

"I can?" Seto asked with surprise, setting the bottle and his own glass to the table.

"Yeah," Yugi leaned back and opened the belt of his pants. "I usually do it a bit uncomfortably. Because the right leg doesn't bend unless I loosen up the joint - and I don't want to do that - I can't put my pants on or take them off while the legs are on. So I just…" he shifted in the couch and pushed his leather pants over his hips. Seto was rather relieved to see that Yugi had boxers under the pants. Yugi snorted at him. "Don't give me that look. You're the one who wanted to see. Now help me take these off."

"Right…" Seto grimaced slightly before kneeling to the floor and helping Yugi out of the leather pants. It was rather embarrassing until he encountered the edge of Yugi's right leg's prosthetic - the pants almost tangled in edge of the socket. Frowning Seto eased the leather over the plastic edge. "How do you put your pants on if you can't reach to put them on when you have the legs on?"

"I can bend my left leg, so it's easier," Yugi said, shifting the said leg a little to help Seto with the undressing process. "I usually pull the pants onto the right leg, half way anyway, before pulling the right leg on. That makes it easier."

"I see," Seto murmured, easing the pants over the leg knee, where he encountered the edge of the left prosthetic. It was rather bizarre to see them like this. It was different thing to see them laying around than seeing them actually on and performing the function they had been created for. "How long does it usually take you to pull them on or take them off?"

"All together about ten minutes," Yugi shrugged, shifting a bit as Seto pulled the pants off entirely. "These days anyway. In the beginning it took a bit longer."

"Hm…" Seto nodded and stepped back. It was really strange to see the plastic contraptions taking place where actual legs had once been. Then Seto noticed something. Yugi had some sort of clothing on underneath the prosthetics. Socks of some sort.

"I can't exactly pull them on without anything between them and my skin. They would chafe, maybe even cause blisters," Yugi said, shifting a little and leaning forward. Then he started to ease the right leg off. It looked easier than Seto had thought. He had thought that there would be some sort of mechanism' holding the legs in place, but it seemed like there were none. It seemed like Yugi simply pulled them off and off.

"See, easy as that," Yugi said, placing the prosthetic aside before pulling off the sock-like cloth that had been between his leg and then prosthetic. Then, leaning back a little, he scratched the revealed thigh. "My legs get itchy in those things," he laughed. "It's frustrating as hell, having itch like that. It's impossible to scratch it."

Seto chuckled before directing his attention to the stump. "Can I…?" he raised his hand out to touch but knew that he probably shouldn't without permission.

"Go ahead," Yugi nodded and then watched as Seto carefully touched the stump.

It felt strange. Seto's mind told him that this was where the knee was supposed to be, but it wasn't there and it didn't feel right. The skin of the stump was surprisingly firm and so was the flesh underneath the skin was rather firm as well. Though it was probably because Yugi's thigh was rather thin, there wasn't enough tissue there to feel loose.

Then Seto ran his fingers over the thick pink scar. It was almost in the middle of the stump "This is the surgery scar right?" Seto asked.

"That one is, yeah. They didn't have much skin left to work with so the scar is a bit thick." Yugi shifted his leg a bit and then took hold of Seto's hand. He took it back to the top of his thigh and then guided it bit to the direction of Yugi's inner thigh. There was a small abrasion there. "This one came when I was cut by the glass shards when the windshield shattered. I have lot of scars like this one, mostly on my stomach and arms. Most of them healed so well that you can't even see them, though."

_'Ah yes, the car accident,'_ Seto swallowed, pulling his hand back from Yugi's soft, warm skin. Then he looked up. "Your face didn't get hit?" he then asked, examining Yugi's features. He hadn't thought of it before, but Yugi really had no scars on his face.

"I threw up my arms to protect my head," Yugi smiled, pushing the right sleeve of his white button up shirt up to show some thin cuts on his arm. "They took most of the damage."

Seto stared at the cuts before reaching his hand and touching them. They didn't feel like much, but he almost winced at the thought of how they had gotten there and what Yugi had gone though. _'He really… went through a lot,'_ he thought, brushing his thumb over the cuts. _'And according to his own words, he came near dying too… very near.'_

Shaking his head the taller man glanced up to the shorter one, only distantly realising that he was sitting on his knees almost between Yugi's legs. "I'm glad that you survived only with scars," he said honestly before adding quickly. "Scars and amputation."

Yugi chuckled, leaning a bit forward before leaning down. "Me too," he answered, his hand coming to the other man's chin. Seto had just enough time for his eyes to widen with surprise before shorter man kissed him. And just like the last time when Yugi had done it, the taller man's entire body seemed to freeze.

Then Yugi tilted is head a bit to the side and jumpstarted Seto's entire body, making the taller man shudder slightly. Enjoying the sensation of Yugi's chuckle against his lips, Seto allowed his eyes fall shut while leaning forward slightly. Despite the fact that the sensation seemed to dismantle his brain, he realised that he liked it quite a lot. _'I think I can really grow adjusted to this,'_ Seto mused somehow distantly, his mind getting slightly fuzzy as Yugi gently nibbled his lips. _'Just as soon as I figure out how to breathe while he does that…'_

Thankfully Yugi pulled back before breathing became an issue. Licking his lips, the shorter man chuckled softly. "This is funny," he murmured, grinning at confused look Seto gave him. "Just look at us! I'm a half dressed invalid with a single prosthetic on and I have a gorgeous man like you on your knees before me! And you even have a tie on and everything!"

"Oh yes, it's hilarious," Seto said flatly, but felt a small smile tugging on the corner of his lips at the sound of Yugi's laughter. With a shake of his head, Seto shifted back and watched how chuckling Yugi started to remove his left leg's prosthetic. _'Yeah… This thing of ours will work,'_ the taller man mused with satisfaction, knowing that he had made all the right decisions that day.

x

Yush, relationship established. Beginning of the story has now been concluded, next we start fumbling along the middle of the story. For those who seem to get tired of having just Yugi and Seto in the story, we shall be getting more characters to the story soon. Thank you all so very much for your comments. 'till next Saturday.


	8. VIII chapter

**VIII chapter**

Seto glared at the computer screen, once more going through the plans of what had once been Nerobot and was now something else. He had read through the files some dozen times, he had researched the subject as well as he could - bought a small library of books about the subject, though he hadn't more than glanced at any of them yet. Yet as well as he had done his research, he still fell short in understanding the technology his adoptive father had been creating for one reason - he was no expert of neurology.

_'I can build the robotics with no sweat but the Central Nervous System receiver will be a problem. I can make most of that too, but not all of it. I need a specialist to work out the rest,'_ he mused with dislike. He hated it when he had to rely on outside help. It was easy to rely on the workers of his company since he paid their wages and could rise or drop them according to their performance - he had their motives firmly in his grasp. But with outsiders he never could tell what they were after. And the last time he had worked with doctors it had caused a bout of bad fame for month or so - his sales had dropped enormously, to the point that he still winced at the memory of it.

_'Though with this thing I doubt that can happen,' _Seto thought._ 'Last time I had to rely on doctors was when there were rumours about the hologram technology causing schizophrenia. Ridiculous notion but one of those so called experts was dead set on bringing my company down, whether his accusations were correct or not. Like a little thing like that could cut it, but still… it was bitch to get my company's reputation on the right track…'_

This project had nothing to do with hologram technology or the Disc Consoles. Nor did it have any fame or reputation right now, so nothing could be ruined. Yet Seto was still wary about having to rely on outside help. _'Scientists and engineers and programmers I have,'_ he mused. _'I even have a few scientists who are specialised in robotics, they will automatically work with this. But before I can even start, I need a goddamn doctor.'_

He hated having limitations with what he could work with. Having a free hand was preferable to being limited to the fact that he was lacking a skill. But with this project he hated it even more. With most projects he could just turn away, roll his eyes and move onto something else, but not with this. He had to get this one to work.

_'Not that I have any arrangements about this or anything,'_ he thought, rubbing his hand over his forehead. _'But I want to get this work.'_ He snorted. Last time he had wanted to make something had been the creation of the original disk-model of the Duel Disk. The second version had just been adaptation of that technology into more agreeable format.

Shaking the thought out of his head, Seto turned his attention to the computer screen. Getting the CNS receiver working was just the first thing he needed to do. The rest of it would be far more complicated. The transmitter, the signal translator, then the robotics themselves… and all this would be just the first stage. Getting the technology into a light, usable form would be possibly the hardest task.

_'Technology gets smaller and lighter each year,'_ Seto mused, throwing a glare at his phone. Because it was so small, he tended to lose it all the time. _'So that's nothing new. The technology race about size and efficiency has been going on since the creation of the first cell phones and laptops. These days it's going into insane heights - away from chips and gigabytes to nanotechnology and terabytes…'_

But this technology would have nothing to do with the size-race. He needed it to become light just because it would be impossible to utilize it perfectly if it wasn't light enough. _'Gozaburo designed this technology to work as a single piece - an entirely robotic body. He had no problems with the weight because of that - an entire robotic body can easily be enabled to handle that sort of weight. But for what I'm planning this for, it must be light…'_

It wouldn't be impossible. With different sort of shell design and with the light but durable metals they had these days, it would indeed be possible to make the technology light. But it would take time - and first he needed to get it working. And to get it working, he needed the CNS-receiver. And to get that working, he needed a specialist.

_'I can't ask any public figure, none of the famous doctors,'_ he mused. _'It's usually the most skilled ones that get the fame but fame comes with problems. I don't want them making headlines about this one.'_ With a sigh he leaned back in his seat. _'Doctors of public hospitals are out of the picture as well - if they're not skilled enough to work in private hospitals, they aren't skilled enough to work with me. But doctors of private hospitals will no doubt end up being ridiculously expensive to hire…'_

Pretty soon he ended up excluding every single sort of doctor he could think of. With a groan he brushed his hand over his eyes. _'I loathe doctors,'_ he thought. _'Most of them are petty ungrateful bastards just after their patient's money. But I shouldn't let that get in my way. I need to make this work. To make it work, I need help. As much as I hate it.'_

Hearing the door opening, Seto frowned. "Did I not specifically tell you that I was not to be disturbed?" he asked, expecting to see his current idiot-assistant who was just waiting to be fired. "Get out of my office - and if you really have something to bring to my attention, use the goddamn phone! It's there for a reason!"

"I'm not one of your workers so you may as well stop yelling at me," a female voice said, as a woman in dark blue blazer and knee lenght skirt stepped in. With a sleek briefcase in one of her hand and her hair tied into tight bun, she looked like one of the many lawyers who now and then appeared to try and sue him because of something. Usually they failed because Seto had the most skilled lawyers of Japan working for him.

"And who the hell are you? Why did my assistant let you in?" Seto asked with narrowed eyes, already wondering where he could get a new assistant. The idiot that was supposed to be working for him had made too many mistakes as it was.

The woman calmly closed the door and stepped further inside. "Your assistant let me in because of this," she held up an ID-card. "I borrowed it from my future husband. He doesn't know, but I'm sure he'd forgive me if he did."

Seto stared at the card and then slowly sat up as he started to remember who the woman was. Last time he had seen the woman, she had been wearing a simple blouse and jeans - she had looked not even nearly as business-like as she did now. "And what are you doing here, woman?" the president of the Kaiba Corporation glared at his brother's so-called-fiancé. "Where is Mokuba?"

"Mokuba is at home and he doesn't know I'm here," the woman, Nosaka Miho, answered calmly while hiding Mokuba's ID card in her pocket. "And I'm here to build bridges with you," she raised her chin, her eyes calm but with hint of steel in them. "I'm planning to marry your brother and I want it to be perfect. And until the rift between you two has been repaired, it won't be. Whether he says it out loud or not, Mokuba wants to be married with your approval and with you there, giving him your support."

"Well that isn't happening," Seto narrowed his eyes. The gall of the woman, to actually steal his brother's ID card and show up in Seto's office unannounced. "Why don't you tell me why you are really here, woman? Are you after my money since Mokuba is no longer in the company's payroll? If you think that you can get any money out of me, you're sorely mistaken -"

"I don't want your money, Kaiba Seto. I never wanted it," the woman frowned at him before taking a deep breath as if to try and calm herself down. Then she faced him with steady eyes. "I want you to approve the marriage. I want you to support your brother. This fight between you two is making him unhappy."

Seto shifted slightly at the words, hating the notion of Mokuba being in any way unhappy. And if he was the cause of his brother's unhappiness, then it was a few times worse. But then his suspicions overrode the guilt. "You speak as if you care about his happiness," he sneered. "You might fool him but you don't fool me. You've only been after his money." He blinked in sudden realisation before his glare intensified. "That's it, isn't it? You want to marry him so that in case something happens to him, you inherit everything."

"Is money really all you think about?" Nosaka frowned. Before Seto's worries about her killing his brother because of money had even started to form, she marched up to his desk. Then, as Seto stood his ground with a glare, she opened her briefcase and took out a paper. Then she slapped it to the table. "There, in official black and white. My debts. Why don't you read them through?"

With a suspicious scowl, Seto took the paper and glanced through it. Then he frowned. If was an official summary about the debts and their payments. The debts had been to a company that offered loans. Nosaka's father had taken a big loan to form a company of his own, but it hadn't worked out the way he had wanted it to. Withholding a slight wince at the sub note about Nosaka's father committing suicide and leaving the debts to his daughter, Seto glanced over the payments. Nosaka had been paying the debts already when they had been in their first year in high school. She had had more than half of them paid by the time she had met Mokuba - and by the looks of it, even after meeting with Mokuba, she had been paying over half of the payments with her own money. Only forty percent came from Mokuba's account.

"I never asked your brother to help me with the payments, I never needed it," the woman before him said with cold voice. "I have always been more than capable of paying them myself."

Seto frowned. The payments had been relatively small back when Nosaka was studying, but then, when she had been twenty three, they had suddenly been raised. "Why did the payments triple?" Seto asked.

"I was hired to the Domino Public Hospital," she shook her head. "Thanks to the wages, I was able to make bigger payments - and therefore get the debt dealt with quicker."

_'Hospital?'_ Seto wondered silently while glaring at the paper. _'She's a doctor?'_ Then he noticed something else. There had been three payments that month - and they had been the last ones. "All the payments have been paid," he said, glancing up. "You've paid all the debts?"

"Yes," she shook her head again, folding her hands. "I wanted to get the debts dealt with before I got married, so we hurried with the payments. And now that it's done and over with, the next thing to deal with is you. You and your brother's feud."

"I never had a feud with Mokuba. I had a feud with you," Seto glared at the woman.

"You had a feud about me, but I wasn't taking any part of it," Nosaka sighed with slightest signs of frustration. "I wasn't the one yelling nor was I the one you hit. But despite that, I know that I'm the one who has to work this out - right now you and Mokuba would just end up in another shouting match."

For a while the president of the Kaiba Corporation stared at the woman before him. Then he slowly sat back in his chair, still holding onto the statement of the debts. "Why do you want to marry my brother?" he then asked. A voice in the back of his head was still nagging about her wanting his brother's money but another voice - Yugi's voice - was telling him to at least listen to her.

"Because I love him," Nosaka said, holding her chin high up as if she was proud about it.

"And why do you love him?" Seto's eyes narrowed.

The woman blinked before lowering her eyes to him and frowning. "There is no why in love. There is no reason. I love him because I do," she shook her head. "If you think that there's one certain thing that makes me attracted to him, you're wrong. There is no one thing. It's everything about him. The good things and the bad things - and money, I'll have you know, is not one of these things."

Seto frowned at the words. She could've been talking in another language for all he knew.

"In the end I don't really care about what you think about me specifically," the woman shrugged her shoulders stiffly. "But I care about what you think of Mokuba. I only want Mokuba's happiness and your fight is not making him happy," she sighed and closed her briefcase. "Could you, at least for his sake, reconsider this feud? It would make him very happy to have your approval and support for our relationship."

When Seto didn't answer, she straightened her back. Placing something down to Seto's desk, she turned around. "That is my phone number. I'm staying at Domino Central Hotel for now, but I will be leaving in three days. I hope you think this through and give me a call before I leave so that we can put this ridiculous dispute behind us." With that said, she left the office.

Left alone, Seto glanced down to the statement he was still holding. Then, placing the sheet of paper down, he reached to take the card she had left. It was a business card of neurologist Nosaka Miho.

x

"So you've already sold all the DC3s?" the teenager asked thoughtfully.

"Yeah. The last one was auctioned off yesterday," Yugi smiled at the customer, slightly amused by the fact that the teenager seemed to believe that he could've bought one. Yugi had tried to keep the auction within reasonable limits but the bidding of the last console had still risen over hundred and fifty thousand yen before he had closed it. "The actual release will be only in a week or so," he then reminded the boy. "You can buy one then."

"Yeah, well the five thousand consoles are going to be legendary just because they were sold ahead of schedule," the teenager sighed. "They'll be worth a lot of money even after the actual release will kick in."

"Probably," the shop keeper agreed, leaning his elbows against his counter. "So are you looking for something today or did you just stop by to chat?" he asked curiously. Some of his customers came by just to chat. Yugi made sure that he was always aware of the rumours and such of the gaming world so that he could offer his customers as much information as possible. These days it had gotten to the point where he had became some sort of informant for his customers as well as a game dealer.

"Well, I read a rumour in the 'net about new selection of terrain chips," the teenager leaned against the counter as well. "Some think that Kaiba Corp is going to make a series of terrain chips made of actual places. Like foreign cities like Paris and Venice and stuff."

"Oh that," Yugi smiled, remembering how Seto had explained his plans about the new terrain chips. "There are plans for it, that much I know. And I think they will be actually made - but I don't know when they will be out. With Kaiba Corp you never know."

"Yeah, they'll probably hold the release dates just out of spite sometimes," the teenager sighed. "But it will be cool when they will be made. Think they'll make places like New York or Las Vegas? I've always wanted to see them."

"Maybe. I'm more interested about Egypt and Mount Everest and the possible tropical rain forests and such," Yugi shrugged. "It would be fun to see them."

The teenager snorted. "Boring."

Yugi chuckled. _'Youth,'_ he mused with a shake of his head. "I'll keep an eye out for more rumours about the new terrain chips," he then said. "But I think it will take a long while before they're out in the market."

"Alright," the teenager nodded before stretching his hands. "What new games are there coming to the DC3?" he then asked and Yugi launched into long explanation about the games coming to the new and improved hologram console. Since he knew that the teen was mostly interested about action and adventure games, he spoke mostly about them.

It was in middle of this explanation when the door to the game shop opened. Yugi glanced up, his eyebrows rising at the sight of Seto marching inside. The taller man had a serious frown on his face and his stride was longer and faster than usual. He only glanced at Yugi and the teen before walking past them, behind the counter and then into the backroom. _'Well, didn't he march in as if he owns the place,'_ Yugi mused. _'I wonder what's bothering him.'_

"Who was that?" the teen asked curiously.

"A friend," Yugi smiled, knowing that the teen wouldn't believe him if he would say Seto's name - and it was probably best not to say it anyway. The boy would just tell all his friends and then Yugi's shop would be flocked with fans of Seto's games.

With a shake of his head, Yugi finished the explanation about the new games. The teen nodded here and there before asking him to make sure that the shop would have a copy of certain games for him once they would come out. "I'll book them for you," Yugi said, taking out the notebook where he had listed all the future shipments and the things he had ordered. He wrote notes about the teen's order in the book before glancing up. "Do you want me to book a console for you too?"

"Yeah, of course," the teen nodded and Yugi did as asked. Then, with few more words exchanged about the games, the teen left. Seeing that it was already close to his closing time, Yugi decided that he could close the shop early that day and go and see what was bothering his grumpy boyfriend.

_'Okay, that's just ridiculous, thinking of Kaiba Seto as a boyfriend,'_ he chuckled while limping to the door and locking it. Then after glancing over the shop, he limped his way to the backroom. Seeing that Seto wasn't there, Yugi then headed to the elevator and to the upstairs. Seeing that Seto had undressed his shoes and coat, Yugi did the same as quickly he could. Then he ventured into his apartment in search for the other man. He found Seto stretched out on his couch with his arm thrown over his eyes as if to block the light out.

"Hard day at work?" Yugi asked curiously, limping into the living room and then sitting beside Seto on the couch.

"Whatever made you think that?" Seto asked cuttingly but with smile tugging in the corner of his lips. "I'm sorry for barging in."

"Barge in all you like, I don't mind," the shop keeper smiled softly. "What's bothering you then?" he asked, seeing that despite laying down, Seto was still rather tense. "What happened?"

The president of Kaiba Corp was quiet for a moment before lowering his hands. "That woman came. Mokuba's fiancé," he frowned and sighed heavily. "She wants to try and make peace between me and Mokuba. According to her the situation is making Mokuba unhappy."

Yugi raised his eyebrows with surprise. _'Woah. That woman actually faced Seto about thing like that? She's brave,'_ he mused before lowering his eyes. "It's making you unhappy too, fighting with your brother," he then said. Even though Seto preferred not to talk about it, Yugi knew that it was bothering him a lot. Seto and Mokuba had probably never fought this badly. "Did you fight with her?"

"I don't think was a fight really," the taller man murmured, frowning. "She brought the statement of her debts. They're all paid - she paid major part of them alone. She was paying them already back when we were in high school…" he sighed. "And it seems like she was capable of paying them easily even without Mokuba's help."

"So, she isn't after his money then," Yugi smiled softly. _'Maybe Seto is now seeing the light.'_

"She still could be plotting something. Maybe she wants to get married with him so that when he dies, she'll get all of his money," Seto frowned. "Maybe she's plotting to kill him -"

"Seto," Yugi sighed heavily. "Do you really believe that? Does she really seem like ruthless killer?" he shook his head. "And do you really think that Mokuba is stupid enough to be fooled like that? You're his brother so you should know him the best. Would he really be naïve enough to fall for that?"

The taller man looked uncomfortable. "He's too young to get married."

"He's old enough to decide for himself," the shopkeeper stated softly. When it seemed like Seto wasn't about to agree or calm down, Yugi took his cane and sat up. "I'll get you a drink. Maybe that'll help you relax a bit." Seto nodded with gratitude but didn't look at him.

With a sigh Yugi limped to the kitchen and took out the half finished brandy bottle from the last time Seto had visited. Pouring a shot from it, he then took out the ice cube mold and added few cubes to the glass. While waiting for the ice to cool the liquid down - since Seto hated warm brandy - Yugi wondered about the situation with the Kaiba family. _'I think Seto already knows that Miho isn't after Mokuba's money. But he doesn't want to admit it. Doesn't want to admit that he was wrong and that the fight they had was essentially his fault. Sometimes that man's ego really gets in the way of his rational mind.'_

When he was sure that the brandy had cooled down, Yugi took the glass to his left hand and then limped back to the living room. Sitting down beside Seto again, he nudged the taller man's side. "I have some brandy for you," he said.

"Hmm… thank you," the taller man said, taking the glass from his hand and drinking half of it with a single swallow. Then he reached to place the glass to the coffee table in front of the couch. After a moment of silence, Seto snorted. "You know, when she stepped into my office, I didn't even recognise her," he suddenly said. "I only realised who she was when she showed me Mokuba's ID card. Isn't that funny?"

Yugi hummed thoughtfully. "I guess you didn't pay much attention to her as a person back when you met her for the first time," he mused, setting the cane aside to lean against the table's edge. Then he leaned forward before stretching himself down beside the other man. It was a bit uncomfortable because of the prosthetics but he managed to shift his legs so that they weren't in their way. "Does she want you to make up just for the sake of Mokuba's happiness then?" Yugi asked.

Seto gave him a slightly shocked look but didn't say anything about the sudden intimate position. "Seems so," the taller man mused, shifting a little so that Yugi had more space on the couch. "She wants my approval for the wedding. Wants me to support Mokuba."

"And do you want to support him?" Yugi asked quietly. When Seto looked away with a frown, Yugi raised his hand to his cheek and directed his face back to his direction so that he could see the taller man's icy eyes. "If Mokuba and Miho really want this, if they really love each other and really want to get married, would you support them? Or stand in the way making Mokuba feel miserable?"

"Don't word it like that," Seto murmured, closing his eyes with a frown. "You're making me sound cruel."

"You are being cruel," Yugi chuckled softly, brushing his thumb over the taller man's cheek. "Not only are you being cruel to them but to yourself. This is making you feel bad too, I can see that easily." When Seto didn't answer, Yugi sighed, slipping his fingers to the other man's hair. "Isn't there any way you can work it out between you? To me it seems like you and Miho both want Mokuba to be happy. Why can't you work together?"

Seto sighed. "I'm not even sure if she's worthy enough to make Mokuba happy. He deserves the best."

"She could be the best, you just don't know it," Yugi smiled. "Maybe you should get to know her for Mokuba's sake. You might find that she's perfect for your brother. Not making contact will just make you ignorant. And you are the least ignorant person I've ever known."

Seto snorted. "And you're the most ignorant person I've ever known."

"So, we match poorly but we fit perfectly," Yugi chuckled, his smile widening when Seto finally opened his eyes. The expression of confusion was gone from them. "Feeling better now?" the shopkeeper asked from the taller man, stroking his fingers through his thick brown hair.

"Yes, much," Seto nodded. "You'd work well as a mediator. Or negotiator."

"Maybe," the shorter man mused, looking at his face for a moment before pursing his lips. "So, what are you going to do about this situation with Miho and Mokuba?"

"She's still in town. I'll call her tomorrow and test if she's any good," Seto mused. "I have a project she might be able to help me with. If she can, I might accept her as my brother's future wife."

_'Test her, huh? Well, with Seto that's probably the best you can hope for,'_ Yugi mused. _'At least he's going to try.'_ Shifting closer to the taller man, Yugi smiled softly. "I'm glad. You're still tense though. Mind if I try and relax you a little?"

"And how are you going to do that?" Seto asked with slight hint of amusement in his tone.

Yugi just smiled and leaned forward to kiss the taller man. Seto hummed with surprise against his lips but didn't move away as Yugi pressed slightly closer. Tilting his head a bit to deepen the kiss slightly, Yugi hummed with delight. _'I really like kissing Seto. He's so stiff and has no idea how to kiss, but his lips are sweet… though now he tastes like brandy.'_

"How is this relaxing?" Seto murmured against his lips when Yugi pulled back a little.

"It would be if you would breathe," Yugi chuckled. He had noticed that Seto always stopped breathing when they kissed. "Why do you do that anyway? It's not like I'm blocking your nose, is it?" he lowered his hand from Seto's hair to his nose and then, just out of the childishness of it, he pinched it. He was forced to smother a giggle at the face the other man made at him.

"Stop that," Seto growled, taking hold of his hand and pulling it away from his face. "And I'm only getting adjusted to this kissing… thing."

"What a sensual way of putting it," Yugi chuckled, leaning forward and pressing a light kiss to the other's lips. "You better get used to it soon. I like kissing."

"I've noticed," Seto grumbled, falling silent when Yugi pressed his lips more fully against his. Chuckle bubbled from Yugi's throat as he sensed Seto's first attempt of breathing during a kiss. Who would've guessed that Kaiba Seto was completely inexperienced with kissing?

_'Well, I am too, but at least I'm putting some effort into it. He just freezes up,'_ Yugi mused with slight amusement. Just then Seto moved his lips slightly. The brush of the other's lips against his made Yugi shudder slightly and before he noticed it he was leaning closer and slightly over the other. _'Ooh, nice. Please do that again,'_ Yugi thought, unwilling to part now that the kiss was almost mutual. With some coaxing, Seto did do it again but it took more work to make him keep up with it.

"Okay, that's better," Yugi mumbled happily while pulling back some time later. He opened his eyes and then stopped to stare at the other man. Seto was slightly out of breath and there was slight flush of red on his cheeks. _'Oh wow...'_ Yugi thought with shock, staring at the other's slightly dilated eyes. Then he smiled widely. _'My, doesn't he look hot.'_

When Yugi leaned closer to get another kiss, he found his path blocked by Seto's hand that pressed against his chest. "Let me catch my breath," the taller man grumbled at him,

"You're no fun," Yugi smiled widely, but kept a slight distance. Leaning his elbow against the couch's cushions, he noticed that he was leaning over the other man. _'Hm. I like this angle,'_ he mused with slight satisfaction before turning his eyes to the man below him. Seto's lips gleamed. _'And I definitely like this look on him. How un-Kaiba like.'_

"I don't like that look on your face. Whatever you're thinking, stop it," the taller man said flatly to him.

Yugi chuckled, leaning his cheek against his palm. "I can't think that you look hot?" he asked teasingly, bringing his hand up and to touch the other man's lips. They felt slightly moist.

Seto blinked at him. "Fine, I withdraw my statement," he then said, trying to sound casual.

"I thought you might," the shorter man answered amusedly, leaning down. "Can I kiss you now?" he asked, his lips almost against the other man's. When Seto opened his mouth to answer, the words never made their way past Yugi's lips.

x

The next day Seto called Nosaka Miho and asked her to meet in his office. She was dressed in just as business like manner as she had during their last meeting - apparently she was expecting another argument. Seto was rather relieved by it, though. For his plan it was better that she would be acting like a professional.

"Have you thought about what I asked of you then?" she asked once she had gotten to the office. This time she had been guided there by Seto's assistant. Seto preferred that to the idea of the woman using his brother's ID card again.

"I have," Seto nodded, looking at her coolly and wondering for the nth time if she would be up to this. Then he tilted his head to the side. "I'm willing to give it a chance on one condition."

Nosaka nodded, looking like she had been expecting it. "And this condition is…?" she raised her eyebrows.

Seto motioned her to come closer and turned the monitor of his computer around to show her the plans of the project he was currently working on. "You are a neurologist, right? As in a doctor specialising on brain and nerves and such?" he raised his eyebrows and she nodded in agreement. "Well then. You will help me make this."

"And this is…?" she frowned with confusion, stepping closer to examine the plans. Her frown darkened as she glanced through the plans. Then as she realised what they were about, her eyebrows raised. "What is this?" she then asked, turning her eyes to him.

"It was originally a project created by Kaiba Gozaburo, the adoptive father of Mokuba and myself," Seto leaned back, examining the woman's expressions. "It was another of his military projects. I intend to take the technology and turn it into something else - but to my misfortune, I need a specialist to help me recreate the technology. A specialist like yourself."

Nosaka threw a thoughtful look at him before turning her eyes to the monitor again. "What are you intending to do with this technology?" she then asked. "Another game device?"

"No. This is not a project that will be merchandised, at least not right now," Seto shook his head. "I'm doing it for… personal reasons." He turned a little and took out the new plans he had made for the technology. He handed the papers to the woman before him. "This is what I want to do with them. Everything else I can make and perfect myself, except for the Central Nervous System receiver, transmitter and translator. For that I need someone who understands the nervous system."

"These are…" the woman frowned before looking. "Are these what I think they are?"

"Highly advanced prosthetic legs, yes," Seto nodded calmly. "Prosthetics so advanced that their wearer can even wiggle their toes if they so wish."

"If this is possible to make then you're changing the very face of prosthetic technology - not only that, but you're giving medicine a new direction," the woman said with slightly shocked. "Do you even realise what you are trying to make?"

"I'm trying to make the wounded walk," Seto said simply, leaning back in his seat. "If you will help me make this possible then I will accept that you are worthy enough to become my brother's wife. I'll even stand there and clap when you get married. I might even make a toast."

The woman stared at him in shock. Then she frowned and nodded. "I will try. And not only because of Mokuba but because of this technology as well. If this is possible to make, it will benefit medical science greatly."

Seto blinked before nodding. _'At least she has her priorities straight. Seems like she even hasn't stopped to think about how much making these will cost, either,'_ he mused. "Very well then, Miss Nosaka. When can you start?" he asked.

"I need to call Mokuba to discuss this with him," the woman said with slightest frown. "But other than that, I will start as soon as I can."

Seto started slightly at the words. "Alright then," he then said. "I expect you here tomorrow morning at eight so that I can show where you will start to work. You should have my phone number so call me in case you are unable to come on time."

The woman nodded. "I look forward to working for you, Mister Kaiba," she said. Before turning to leave, she noticed that she was still holding onto the plans. "Can I keep these for now?" she then asked, raising the papers a bit. "I want to look through these more closely."

"Of course, that is why I printed them," Seto nodded and then watched as she left. Once left alone, the president of Kaiba Corporation frowned. _'She'll tell Mokuba about this? That will no doubt bring Mokuba here as well…'_ With a sigh he sat up and walked to the window that was directly behind his chair. _'And when he will come here, I will be forced to reconcile with him…'_ Whilst the thought seemed slightly frightening, he was almost relieved by it.

Staring down to the city of Domino, Seto folded his hands. _'I just hope this works,'_ he thought with a frown. For the sake of his relationship with Mokuba, for the peace of their already broken family… and for Yugi's sake. _'I hope this works.' _

x

So, there we have it. Introduction of Nosaka Miho who has balls of steel. I like her. I bet you were expecting someone else, eh? Some of you figured out the whole Nerobot thing, very good. Imaginary cookies to everyone. And don't worry about her taking the show, this is still Rivalshipping story and that isn't going to change. 'till next Saturday then.


	9. IX chapter

**IX chapter**

Seto looked through the plans of the project. Everything was about ready. He had cleared one of his most advanced laboratories for the project and made sure that he and Nosaka would have all they needed to start working. Getting his hand onto the right parts would be ridiculously easy - he probably had most of them and what he didn't have he could easily manufacture. Owning factories really came in handy with things like these.

_'We have the parts, we have the idea and we have the means,'_ Seto thought with a frown. _'All that's left is for us to create the technology. Gozaburo never went far with it, but he did create the sensors that will enable the creation of the CNS- receiver. I can create it but Nosaka needs to design the receiver and calibrate it…'_ he sighed. _'I hate having to rely on her, but this will take things further along. Many things.'_

Leaning his chin to his knuckles he kept staring at the plans. _'Well, I will need some help with creating the prosthetics themselves. I've made machines before, but not ones like these. If I want to make it as perfect as I want to, I will need… help. It's not like I have any extensive understanding of the human physique…'_ glancing up he snorted. _'Not that that will stop me, though. I don't have the knowledge yet but I'll learn. I'll make this possible. And when I'm hundred percent certain that I can do this… then I will tell Yugi. Only then.'_ He didn't want to get Yugi's hopes up too soon.

Hearing a knock on his office's door, Seto glanced at his wrist watch. It was almost exactly eight o'clock. _'Punctual woman,'_ he thought with slight appreciation before raising his eyes. "Come in," he allowed, leaning back in his chair. When the door opened, his eyes immediately narrowed at the sight of Nosaka. She wasn't alone. _'As expected.'_

"Seto," Mokuba greeted him cuttingly while closing the door behind himself and his woman. He, unlike Nosaka who was dressed very formally, was casually dressed into jeans and vest. "Nice to know that you haven't changed. Still trying to get control over things that you have no say in."

Seto blinked at the words. "And how exactly am I doing that now?" he asked coolly. _'Hello to you too Mokuba. I see you've been doing well and eating alright.'_

"My relationship with Miho is none of your business. She has nothing she needs to prove to you," the youngest of the Kaiba brothers threw a glare at his elder brother. "You have no right forcing her to come here."

"Mokuba -" Nosaka started to say, but her words were interrupted.

"Oh, is that so? And here I was under the distinct impression that she came to me, not the other way around," Seto frowned. "She was the one who walked into my office uninvited - using your ID card, I might add. And I'm not forcing her into anything. I made an offer, she accepted."

"Oh, and this offer was not worded something along the lines of 'if you do this, I will do that', huh?" Mokuba snorted. "Don't try to fool me, big brother, I know you better than anyone. I know the way you machinate and use people to your advantage. You're just using her like you use everyone else."

Seto blinked before snorting. "You're under impression that I gave her no choice," he said with narrowed eyes. "It's not like I'm forcefully making her do this. She can walk out any time she wants. I can always find another neurologist to help me."

"I will not walk away from this," Nosaka cut in, throwing an exasperated look at Mokuba. "Mokuba, please calm down and think of this logically."

The black haired man ignored his fiancé. "What is this project supposed to be anyway?" he asked with narrowed eyes. "Some sort of charity thing? Since when did you do charity Seto? Or are you expecting bad reactions to DC3? I guess the five thousand consoles thing was another marketing plot. Trying to make your buyers more interested, hm?"

Seto snorted. "Since when I've had to explain myself to you, Mokuba?" he asked cuttingly. _'Oh yeah, right. I'll burn down a warehouse and destroy thousands of products just for advertising, of course. That's an excellent marketing plot.'_ He leaned back in his chair. "And being on the subject… what are you doing here anyway?"

"What do you think I'm doing here? You're trying to use my fiancé, I'm here to set you straight!" the younger man glared at the elder one. "You're plotting something and I am not going to let you make Miho part of whatever you are planning!"

"I gave her an opportunity and it seems to me like she's willing to take it," the president of the Kaiba Corporation said calmly. "Your… fiancé is currently working for me. You are not. Therefore I have no business with you."

"Like hell you have no business with me! This whole thing is about the ultimatum you gave to her about our relationship! Of course you have business with me!" Mokuba stepped forward angrily and stared down to his brother. "What makes you think that she has to prove anything to you? What gives you the right for ask for that?"

Seto was quiet for a moment before sighing and standing up. Whilst standing he was slightly taller than his younger brother but Mokuba didn't back down. The fire in his eyes only got fiercer which made Seto almost proud. But he was getting annoyed with the whole thing, so the pride didn't last for long.

"What right?" Seto asked with a crooked smirk. "I have every right! You are my brother and for many years I have been your guardian. I raised you! In the orphanage, in Gozaburo's house and after that, I looked after you!" he leaned forward, easily staring his brother down. "After all that, who but me has the right to look after your interests?"

"Oh yes. You looked after me. Very fine job you did with that too," Mokuba snorted, easily regaining his ground. "What with the mental abuse and you being nearly insane, then ending up in a coma which forced me to look after not only you but the company as well… yes, I was very well taken care of. By Yugi and his friends," he leaned back, folding his hands. "And after that you only cared about duelling - or about the company. Mostly it's about the company these days, isn't it? It hasn't been about my interest for a long while now. Even now this thing is all about the company and it's reputation, isn't it? Charity project to make Kaiba Corporation seem less like the money machine it is."

Seto narrowed his eyes before straightening his back. The words stung a bit because he couldn't quite deny them. "Believe what you want," he then said. _'Right now I can't prove you otherwise…'_ With a shake of his head he turned to Nosaka. "Are you ready to get to work?"

"Seto, don't you dare ignore me," Mokuba growled.

"Mokuba, please calm down," the woman said to him whilst stepping forward and looking up to Seto's eyes. "I'm ready."

"Very well then," Seto nodded, gathering the folder about the Nerobot before walking around his desk. "Come along then. I will show you were we will begin working."

"We?" Mokuba asked cuttingly. "Is the high and mighty Kaiba Seto actually going to work? You haven't actually worked with machinery since the creation of the Duel Disk, have you?"

"This is my project," Seto threw a glare at his brother before walking to the door. "Of course I will work with it."

"Yeah right," Mokuba muttered. "Does this charity project of yours have a name?"

"Limit Breaker," the president of the Kaiba Corporation answered. "Come along, Miss Nosaka. It's time for us to get to work. And it's time for you to leave, Mokuba."

"Don't be ridiculous. I won't leave my fiancé alone with you of all people," the younger man snorted. "If she really thinks she needs to work with you on this then I won't stop her, but I sure as hell won't leave her to your merciful graces. Wherever she goes, I'll go with her."

Seto glanced at his younger brother. _'Does he really think I'd hurt her or something?'_ he wondered with twinge of discomfort. "Do as you want then," he answered, looking away. As Nosaka and Mokuba followed him out of the office, the atmosphere around them was tense. _'This is going to be harder than I thought.'_

-x

Mokuba stared at the laboratory with shock before throwing a suspicious look towards his brother. What was Seto up to? It was the most advanced laboratory they had in the company building. Mokuba had been expecting him to leave Miho in some small, barely equipped laboratory but instead he had brought them here. Just the fact that the laboratory existed cost money and Seto was actually willing to use it for a charity project? Doing something like that here… the expenses would be enormous.

"What are you up to?" Mokuba worded his suspicions but his cold eyed brother ignored him. As Seto stepped forward to explain the machinery to Miho the younger of the two Kaiba brothers folded his hands. _'This makes no sense anyway. If Seto wants to do a charity project for better marketing, why doesn't he just donate some money or games or something? There are easier ways to do charity… Why is he actually going to try and create something?'_

Mokuba hadn't paid much attention to what the project been about when Miho had tried explaining it. He had been too outraged about his brother's actions. Seto had always had the balls to do things most people would avoid doing, so the idea of him trying to use Miho to his own ends wasn't surprising. But to think that he would actually use Mokuba's fiancé…

_'He is plotting something,'_ Mokuba mused, glancing around the laboratory. _'This project and the fact that he wants Miho to help him… he's definitely plotting something. But what?' _he narrowed his eyes._ 'Is he going to try and give Miho a bad reputation? Is he planning to make this project fail and then pin it on her? That isn't part of Seto's tactics, but with him you can never know. He will use every means necessary to gain his goals and his goal is to prevent our marriage no doubt.'_

"…and this is the Hologram Designer. I'm going to have another of these brought here, since we will no doubt both be using it," Seto was explaining, motioning at the hologram table, one of the most expensive pieces of equipment the corporation had. Turning it on the tall man started to explain how to use the hologram table to draw and create holograms. "With these designing the devices should be easier."

"Yes, I can see that," Miho nodded, glancing at him. "But no matter how well the devices are designed, getting them to work is another thing. Getting the CNS-receiver working will be harder than that, even if you have the sensors already designed. The CNS-receiver will no doubt require manual adjusting. And translating the nerve signals into language machinery can understand."

"Exactly," Seto nodded glancing at the woman. "That is why you are here."

Miho nodded. "Yes, but I cannot work as test subject for myself, can I?" she asked. "I'm going to need someone to test the machinery on, once it has been reconstructed. And I need to do some testing before I can even tell how the CNS receiver has to be constructed. I need the sensors before everything - and a test subject."

"I'll get the sensors ready for you as soon as I can. After that you can use Mokuba as your test subject for all I care," Seto made a dismissing motion with his hand, looking away. "Since he's here he might as well make himself useful. I don't really care as long as you get the equipment working the way I need it to work."

Mokuba narrowed his eyes, grinding his teeth together. The way Seto spoke reminded him of the time his brother had been creating the technology of Duel Disk. _'He's definitely up to something. I need to keep an eye out on him.'_

"How long is this… charity project of your going to take?" he asked from his elder brother whilst casually leaning against one of the computer tables.

Seto turned to look at him, raking his eyes over him and then looking away as if finding him uninteresting. "It will last as long as it has to," he answered. He was about to turn to explain something else to Miho when Mokuba spoke again.

"You can't expect us to stay at hotel during this indefinite time don't you?" the younger of the brothers asked cuttingly. "We will come to stay over at the mansion," he then decided, feeling somehow rewarded when Seto threw a frown at him. "I'm sure that the mansion is big enough for us to live there without ever coming in contact with each other. There should be enough space, with eighteen bedrooms and all…" Mokuba trailed away. "Or have you started throwing enormous tea parties for all your friends while I've been gone?"

Seto's frown turned into a cold glare and Mokuba didn't bother hiding his satisfied smirk. _'To think that I'd actually use his inability to make friends against him,'_ he mused while folding his hands. "Well then, big brother?" the younger man asked cuttingly. "How is it going to be?"

The cold eyed president of the Kaiba Corporation looked at him for a while before turning away with a snort. "Do as you will," he said before starting to talk to Miho about some other machine they would need in the charity project.

Mokuba smirked. "Oh, I will," he answered, though inside he felt slightly peeved by the lack of reaction from his brother. _'Damn it. What is he planning…?'_

x

Yugi was just about to close the shop for the day when Seto's car drove to his parking lot. Instead of locking the door, he kept it open, waiting for the other man. It was strange how used he was to the sight already. How adjusted he was to Seto's random, though recently more and more frequent, visits. _'I even wait for them now,'_ the shopkeeper mused to himself and stifled a smile at the way Seto threw his car door shut. Then, seeing the look on the other man's face, he frowned. _'He's in bad mood.'_

"What's wrong?" Yugi asked as the taller man walked up to him. "You look bothered."

Seto grunted and stepped past him into the shop. Once inside he ran his fingers through his hair agitatedly while Yugi closed and locked the door. "Mokuba came," he answered as if it explained everything. "Nosaka started working with me for a project today. I want to see how she works to see if she's any good. Mokuba decided to show up with her."

"Mokuba is here?" the shopkeeper asked with only mild surprise. He had been expecting it ever since Seto had told him about Miho. If Miho and Mokuba were as close as he assumed, then there was no way Miho would deal with Seto without letting Mokuba know. Especially not if Seto was planning to test her somehow. "Did you have a fight?" Seto wasn't the sort of man who could work his things out peacefully and neither was Mokuba really.

"Wasn't as much a fight as it was an argument really," Seto growled. Despite everything he didn't too happy about his brother's return, only agitated. "It's nothing I can't handle. But he ended up hovering about us the entire day because apparently he doesn't trust me with her. And then he decided that he and Nosaka are going to stay over at the mansion for the duration of the project."

Yugi raised his eyebrows. _'That's a bold move on Mokuba's part,'_ he mused with surprise. "They're in your home right now?"

"If they aren't there yet, they will be soon," Seto sighed with annoyance running his hands through his hair before shaking his head. "I shouldn't have asked her to work with me. It got out of hand even before we got started."

The shop keeper shook his head with a slight sigh. _'Seto and Mokuba know each other's buttons so well that they keep pushing them without even meaning to. Seto did step out of line if he actually hired his brother's fiancé. Mokuba is probably answering in kind. And if he's good at something, it's invading the enemy's ground,'_ Yugi sighed, remembering the Duellist Kingdom well. _'If this goes on, they'll both just get burned.'_

Taking a firmer hold of his cane's handle, Yugi limped to the taller man. "You can stay here for the night if you want to," Yugi said, touching Seto's arm carefully. "There is enough room. If you just had a fight, another confrontation this soon is probably not a thing you two need. You should cool off a little."

Seto glanced at him with a frown before shaking his head and looking away. "I don't want to intrude," he said.

"You're not. You're always welcome here," Yugi assured with a soft smile, his left hand sliding around Seto's. Since the taller man wasn't about to move, he started to gently guide him towards the backroom. _'Maybe some distraction would do him good,'_ he pondered. "Have you eaten anything?" Yugi then asked. "Because I'm a bit hungry."

"I think I could eat something," the taller man admitted. He glanced at the shorter man briefly before allowing a small smirk to take the corner of his lips. "Are you going go all mediator on me again?"

"I'm going to help you relax after a hard day at work," Yugi answered calmly while leading the taller man to the backroom and then towards the elevator. He didn't give any attention to Seto's smirk. "I think you deserve as much."

The taller man chuckled dryly but relaxed his shoulders a little. "Am I supposed to ask how your day was?" he then asked with a slightly sarcastic voice.

"My day was boring mostly so there's really no need," Yugi chuckled, glancing at the taller man and gently squeezing his hand. The thought of Seto trying to act like a concerned lover was slightly amusing. "This is quite literally the highlight of my day."

"I'd say that you have low standards but since this is me we're talking about…" Seto smirked at him.

"I gave you another ego boost. Damn," Yugi chuckled as they stepped into the elevator. As the elevator started to lift them to the second floor, Yugi leaned onto the taller man. Then he shifted the cane in his hand so that he was holding it from the middle. Seto didn't even flinch when he used the cane as a hook and pulled the taller man down for a kiss. It was brief but sweet.

"Do you have to do that?" Seto asked, rubbing his neck once Yugi had released him.

"How else am I supposed to kiss you when you're so damn tall?" Yugi grinned. "I don't even reach your shoulders, for gods' sake. Thus I need to use tools and since I carry my cane with me most of the time, it's a good tool for this," his grin widened at the flat look Seto gave him. "It's like my powerful specialised weapon!"

"Right, it's the Cane of Power," the taller man snorted, lowering his hand. "The handle is bumpy, though. I'm going to have bruises thanks to that thing."

"Shall I kiss it better?" Yugi suggested with an amused grin, only to get a dry look in answer. With a chuckle Yugi turned away as the elevator halted and then limped out of it. While Seto undressed his coat and shoes, Yugi sat down to remove his boots. After that they headed to the kitchen where Yugi started to prepare dinner.

_'It's really amazing how easily we've gotten adjusted to this,'_ Yugi mused while they bantered back and forth. _'Spending time and eating together. It has become so usual that it's incredibly comfortable now. It's not even about just having some company anymore. Having his company… it's comfortable.'_

Soon enough the food was done and they ate. It was simple dinner but Seto seemed to have nothing to complain about as they polished their plates. This time the taller man automatically sat up and rinsed his dishes after eating - he even did the same to the frying pan Yugi had used to make the dinner. The action was small and Yugi doubted Seto himself thought much of it, but for some reason it warmed the shopkeeper slightly.

"Do you want to take the prosthetics off?" Seto asked after Yugi had rinsed his own dishes.

"Yeah. They're itching like mad right now," Yugi chuckled and then limped to the living room with Seto after him. _'That's one thing he's still not adjusted to, though. There's still a slight stiffness about him whenever he speaks of my legs…'_ the shorter man smiled while sitting down to the couch in the living room, just beside his wheelchair. He could've sat directly in the wheelchair but right then he wanted to sit on something softer.

Easily unbuckling his belt, Yugi shifted on the couch to get his pants down his hips. Seto, seeing that Yugi hadn't asked for help, sat down beside him and watched as he easily eased the leather over the right prosthetic's socket. Then Yugi eased his left leg off the pants, leaving them hanging underneath the knee of the right prosthetic. Finally he eased the left prosthetic off.

"It seems so easy when you do it," Seto mused thoughtfully, leaning against the backrest and watching how Yugi took of the nylon socks that went between his legs and the prosthetics. "Easy to tell that you've been doing this a lot in the last few years."

Yugi chuckled. "You get used to everything. Even something like this," he said, raising his right leg so that he could ease the prosthetic off. Then he untangled his pants from it. "Practice makes perfect and all that." Setting the pants, the prosthetics and the nylon socks aside, Yugi leaned back and rubbed his hands over the itching skin of his stumps. _'I'm sitting in my boxers before Kaiba Seto and it doesn't bother me at all,'_ he thought with slight amusement.

Seto looked him silently for a while, before leaning his elbow against the backrest of the couch and his temple against his knuckles. "Is it really alright if I'd spend the night here?" he then asked with a frown.

"Yes, of course," Yugi chuckled, leaning back and smiling at the taller man. "I mean it when I say you're always welcome here."

The taller man looked at him seriously for a moment before shifting closer. Yugi's eyes widened slightly as his lips were carefully claimed by the other man. Since their first abysmal kiss, Seto had never started anything like that between them, so it was a bit of a shock. The shock soon melted, though, by the sensation of the other's lips.

With a happy hum, the shorter man threw his arm around the other man's neck. Then, before Seto could even think about pulling back, Yugi shifted closer. The other man stiffened slightly at the action but relaxed soon enough. And then, to Yugi's utter delight, the taller man wrapped one arm around his waist, actually pulling him a bit closer.

After a while of kissing, Yugi pulled back to see that despite all the improvement, Seto still had managed to lose track of his breathing somewhere along the way. Yugi was now hoping that the other man would never get the hang of proper breathing techniques during kissing - Seto looked incredible when he was out of breath.

"Mmm… nice," Yugi murmured to the other man, rubbing his nose languidly against Seto's. "You are getting better with kissing."

"It's a good thing?" Seto asked, staring at him with a hazy look in his eyes.

"A very good thing," Yugi nodded with a smile before pushing into another kiss.

x

_'This man is going to be the death of me,'_ Seto mused as his eyes fell shut. No matter how he tried, he still couldn't breathe properly when Yugi was kissing him. And it wasn't that Yugi was blocking his breathing either - it just got caught somewhere in the middle of his throat and he couldn't work around that blockage. And the worst thing was that right then he didn't really care about if he could breathe or not. He could've choked right there and then and it wouldn't have bothered him.

Seto shivered slightly as Yugi's hand came up to his cheek. As Yugi gently directed his head to a certain position, he found that he didn't mind being manipulated like that at all. The kiss turned deeper after that and right then it was definitely not something he minded. But then Yugi did something with his tongue that sent sparks flying through the taller man.

_'That is not supposed feel like that!'_ Seto objected when Yugi's tongue slid itself between his lips and then invaded his mouth. It was warm and wet and tasted like the dinner they had just eaten and Seto didn't mind. He was supposed to mind - he was supposed to feel disgusted by it! But instead he found himself opening up to the invader and then enjoying the hum of appreciation that resonated from Yugi's lips to his.

Seto was almost disappointed when Yugi pulled back slightly. But instead of parting their lips, Yugi changed the tilt of his head and pushed into another kiss, sending a shudder through the taller man. By itself Seto's hand tightened its hold on Yugi's waist while his other hand came to touch the shorter man's hair. Yugi had coarse hair, spiky and prickly. It rather made sense - it did stick up in spikes - but for some reason Seto had expected it to feel smooth. The coarse feel was nice, though. It felt real.

The taller man wasn't completely sure how long their lip lock lasted. He was light headed and completely out of breath when Yugi finally pulled back. The sound of Yugi's light chuckle made him force his eyes open and then Seto couldn't help but stare. There was a flush on Yugi's cheek and his too-big eyes were brighter than usual. Yugi's lips gleamed with moistness. He looked amazing.

Without bothering to think about it, Seto took hold of Yugi's chin and lifted his face into another kiss. Yugi's amusement turned into hum of enjoyment and then the shorter man tightened his hold on Seto's neck. With his neck being forced into a slightly uncomfortable angle, it felt logical to Seto to try and get rid of the problem. Pulling Yugi onto his lap seemed almost natural.

Then, once Yugi was sitting over him with one amputated leg at each side of Seto's hips, the taller man realised what he had done. He pulled back sharply, only to freeze at the sight of Yugi's soft smile. "This is becoming one heavy make out session," the shorter man chuckled, running his fingers through the taller man's hair. "Don't you agree?"

Seto swallowed, staring at the other warily. "I think you might be right."

Yugi laughed at the words, pressing a brief kiss to the taller man's lips. "I am right," he corrected, nuzzling his nose against the taller man's cheek. "If you want to stop, say it now. I'm not stopping after this," he then whispered in low tone that made Seto shiver.

"Then don't," the taller man muttered with a slight frown. Yugi's answer was a delighted grin and immediately after Seto's lips were claimed to another deep kiss. This time the taller man opened his lips before the other's tongue even tried prying them open. Yugi was quick to take advantage of it.

Seto was starting to feel uncomfortable. Yugi didn't weight much, nor was his presence in any way overpowering, but he was still very much present and closer than Seto had ever let any other human being come. Even Mokuba had never been this close for this long - and most certainly never in this way. The sheer newness of the situation was making the taller man feel slightly awkward. And on top of that, Yugi's weight was pressing Seto's belt buckle into the taller man's stomach uncomfortably. But then Yugi shifted a little in his lap and Seto forgot all about it.

Taking his hands down to Yugi's waist, Seto found himself shifting underneath the smaller man. Yugi's breathing hitched and Seto's own almost stopped entirely. Then Yugi moved in answer and all rational thought flew out of Seto's mind. His fingers curled into the fabric of Yugi's white button up shirt and he was drowning in their kiss even as he slowly pulled Yugi closer.

Suddenly Yugi pulled back from his lips his breathing heavy and his arms tight around Seto's neck. The smaller man stared at him with nearly glowing eyes while pushing his hips closer only to move back a bit. It felt like teasing, the movement was too small and too shallow and Seto wanted more.

"With my legs I can't move that well," Yugi gasped, his hips pushing carefully against Seto's. Realising what he meant, Seto turned his eyes to the couch. The shorter man followed his gaze and then carelessly swept the prosthetics, leather pants and socks down from the couch and to the floor.

With the couch now clear, Seto moved and swiftly pinned Yugi down onto it. He barely even registered the audacity of his move before the shorter one had shifted his legs so that he was nestled between his thighs. "Move," the shopkeeper ordered with a soft growl. Then Yugi directed him into a kiss and the taller man decided that the move had been a right one.

x

Yugi's eyes rolled back behind his closed eye lids as Seto slowly, almost languidly, rubbed against him. It bothered him slightly, the fact that there were so many layers of clothing between them, but in the end it added a delightful quality to the careful passion. They weren't at that stage yet, they weren't comfortable enough for that sort of bareness yet, and the slight hesitation made the situation even sweeter.

Wrapping his arms tighter around the taller man's shoulders, Yugi urged him to move faster. He knew that one day they would get beyond this sort of carefulness and caution. One day they probably wouldn't think twice about ripping each other's clothing off. Because of that this prudence was precious. It had to be cherished…

The thoughts were cut off by a push of Seto's hips. Gasping against the taller man's lips, Yugi tangled his fingers into the back of Seto's well ironed button up shirt. The taller man answered the action by taking a tighter hold of Yugi's hips and rocking against him a bit harder. Their lips parted and with a soft growl Seto pressed his face against Yugi's shoulder. "It this really…?" the taller man panted.

"Yes it is," Yugi answered, tilting his head to the side and kissing Seto's ear gently. "Don't stop," he breathed. Seto didn't answer, merely wrapped his hands tightly around Yugi's waist and rocked against him again.

In the end it was a very simple form of passion and even simpler form of pleasure. Some tiny voice in the back of Yugi's head pondered that it would've been better if they would get rid of the clothing that separated them, but in a way it was too soon and too late for that. And in the end, as amusing as it was, they were both so inexperienced that this was really all they needed.

"Ngh, Seto," Yugi panted softly as the squeeze of the other's arms and the pressure against his pelvis finally sent him over the edge. The taller man answered with a choked gasp, his form quaking slightly before he stilled. Then they were left with nothing but relaxed, breathless bodies and moist underwear.

Yugi chuckled breathlessly, rubbing his hands up and down Seto's back. The sensation of the said back rising and lowering with the taller man's ragged breathing was somehow very satisfying. "You've never really had sex have you?" Yugi panted.

"And you just have to make this even more embarrassing than it already is, don't you?" the taller man growled, slowly unwinding his arms from around the other.

Yugi laughed at the words, quickly tightening his hold on the other before Seto could even think about pulling way. "Calm down. I haven't had sex either," he said, tilting his head and kissing the exposed skin of other man's neck. The skin felt just slightly moist and it left a slightest taste of salt to Yugi's lips. "I'm not laughing at you, I'm laughing at us. I mean come on. We're twenty seven year old virgins," he chuckled against the other's skin. "Having a rut like a pair of horny teenagers."

"Very funny," Seto muttered flatly, shifting a bit and then lying down beside Yugi on the couch. Leaning onto his elbow the taller man stared down at the other one. "Is it that bad?"

"It's not bad at all," the shorter man assured, shifting so that he could press against the other. "Amusing yes, but not bad. At least we have the pleasure of learning together - as hilarious as it will be. We will no doubt make asses out of ourselves, but at least were not alone with the embarrassment," he looked at the other with a grin. "Right?"

The taller man just looked at him for a moment before snorting. The effect was ruined by the kiss he pressed onto Yugi's forehead. "I got my pants dirty thanks to you. You're playing the cleaning bill," he then said calmly.

"Oh shut it. I have a washing machine of my own anyway so I can just wash your clothing myself," Yugi chuckled, resting his cheek against the taller man's chest for a moment. Then he shifted. "I feel dirty too, though. Sticky," he murmured with amusement. "We should clean up. Take a bath and stuff."

"I'm taking a shower first," Seto said, sitting up on the couch.

"I have a bathtub," Yugi raised his eyebrows. "Can't we take a bath together?" He chuckled at the flat look the taller man gave to him while sitting up. "Alright then," Yugi murmured amusedly before sighing with mock sadness. "I'll lie here and feel miserable while you enjoy your bath."

Seto snorted. "Where do you keep your towels? And something clean for me to wear?"

"In the closets right next to the bathroom, though good luck trying to find anything that fits you," Yugi answered with a grin and then watched as the taller man walked away. Left alone in the silence of the living room, he pondered for a moment before laughing softly. _'How very romantic follow up to a moment of passion,'_ he thought, pushing himself into sitting position with his hands. _'But I guess I can't expect more than this from him. He probably wants to think this through alone anyway…'_

It was slightly surprising how things settled back into their usual tracks after they had taken their separate baths. Though it was also comforting as well - it would've been awful if the would've started to act differently after their first slightly sexual experience. After his bath Yugi loaded the washing machine and turned it on before making his way to the living room. There he turned the radio on and then Seto and Yugi just talked while waiting for their hair to dry and the washing machine to finish.

"Is Miho going to work with you on regular basis?" Yugi asked after they had talked about meaningless things for a while.

"Every day," Seto nodded, nursing a glass of brandy - last of the brandy he had brought with him last Friday. "And Mokuba will no doubt end up coming with her. He thinks that I'm, how did he put it, plotting something. He thinks that I hired Nosaka just to wrong her somehow. To make a fool out of her or something like that."

"Did you?" Yugi asked.

Seto glanced at him and then shook his head. "No. I actually need her talents to complete a project - her or someone else who shares her expertise. It was in a way lucky that she walked in when she did, at least I didn't have to hire an outsider. If she hadn't carried all that baggage on her shoulders when she came, it would've been luckier, though."

_'It's mostly your baggage,'_ Yugi mused but didn't say it aloud. _'This whole mess with your brother is mostly your own fault. Not that you're willing to admit it, though. Not yet anyway,'_ he sighed and glanced at the other man. "Well, this way you're forced to work together with your brother. Maybe it will eventually help you overcome this fight if yours."

"I doubt it," Seto muttered staring at his glass for a moment. Then he suddenly changed the subject. "Where am I supposed to sleep?" he asked, glancing at the couch. "Surely not on this thing."

_'I guess he doesn't want to talk about the two of them right now. Well, alright. It's his issue anyway, it's better to let him sort it out on his own. Maybe he'll even learn something from it,'_ Yugi mused. "Don't be stupid," he then snorted at the thought of Kaiba Seto being forced to sleep on couch. "My bed is big enough for both of us."

The taller man gave him a slightly startled look. "Is that really alright?" he then asked suspiciously.

"Of course it is," the shorter man answered, giving him a sly look. "Or are you embarrassed about sleeping with me?" he asked. "Or worried? You shouldn't be. It's not like I'm going to kick you in my sleep."

The taller man snorted. "Alright then," he said before taking a sip of his brandy.

Yugi chuckled to himself while leaning back a bit. _'Sleeping with Seto by my side? Yeah, it will be difficult to sleep tonight,'_ he thought, but it had a happy tone in it. "I probably won't have cold feet either," he then mused, grinning at the way Seto rolled his eyes at him.

x

Sorry for being a bit late, I had some problems with my... location. And yes, Miho is indeed a very convenient person. Now we have Mokuba in the story too, ehehe, and our lovely pair of more or less inexperienced boys have moved onto the second level. I feel like applausing a little. (I upped the rating for this chapter). 'till the next time then...


	10. X chapter

**X chapter**

Seto snapped awake at the sensation of the surface under him shifting. Turning his face to the source of the disturbance, he was granted with a soft chuckle and light touch. "Sorry for waking you. You should go back to sleep. It's only six," Yugi's voice spoke softly as the light touch brushed the hair away from Seto's eyes.

Just barely remembering the day before - and the fact that after some difficulty he had fallen asleep on Yugi's bed with Yugi by his side - Seto groaned. "If it's that early, why are you up?" he asked, raising his hand up to rub the blurriness of sleep from his eyes. It didn't help him see any better and the darkness of the room didn't aid his vision either.

"I woke up and can't sleep anymore," Yugi answered, his thumb brushing briefly over Seto's lips before it withdrew. "Go back to sleep, Seto. I'll wake you in an hour - I should have some breakfast ready for you by then too."

"Coffee," Seto grumbled, burying his face against the nearest pillow and tugging the covers over himself. They felt warm and smelled like Yugi. "Make sure that there's some coffee."

Before drifting off again he heard the other man's soft chuckle and affirmative answer.

It felt like he had just closed his eyes and nodded off when he felt a hand shaking his shoulder. "Seto, wake up. I have breakfast waiting for you," Yugi said, giving one more shake before withdrawing the hand at Seto's growl. Chuckle followed and then, much to Seto's disapproval, light poured into the room. "I also have some coffee for you. You just have to drag yourself out of bed and you'll get some."

Seto grumbled and turned to his side. Brushing his knuckles over his eyes, he frowned slightly at the other man. Yugi was sitting in his wheelchair just under the window, dressed only to a sleeveless black shirt and boxers. The light of morning sun was pouring on him making his hair shine and his eyes shimmer.

"Stop looking so pretty," Seto grumbled at him while pushing himself to sit. "It's too early for your prettiness."

Yugi chuckled at him. "You think I'm pretty?" he asked, pushing the chair beside the bed with a lazy flick of his wrists. "That's a nice thing to say and I'm grateful, but right now I'd be more grateful if you'd drag your sleepy butt up so that I can make the bed."

"Alright, alright," Seto grunted, dragging himself to his feet. "Did my suit dry in time?"

"Yes it did. Your clothing is in the living room - I even ironed them for you," Yugi said while starting to make the bed. He did it with surprising ease considering that he was doing it while sitting down.

"You…" Seto blinked at the shorter man's words, brushing his hand through his hair. He was somewhat aware that he was standing before his old rival half naked. His mind was however entirely too foggy to care. "You… made me breakfast and ironed my clothing?" he then asked with disbelief. "What's the catch?"

"No catch," Yugi answered, smoothing his hand over the now well made right side of the bed. "I just thought that I should send you off to work properly. Now, to the kitchen with you," he said, manoeuvring his wheelchair around the bed to make the other side as well. "Your breakfast is no doubt getting cold."

Seto gave the invalid a bleary look before making his way out of the bedroom. _'Why the hell is he being so damn efficient this early in the morning?'_ he grumbled silently. It had taken him hours to fall asleep - the sound of Yugi's breathing had kept him up - so he wasn't functioning as well as he usually did in mornings. _'I thought eight was supposed to be ungodly and it's seven now…'_

As he sat down to the kitchen table, he for a moment stared at the food that had been laid there. It was simple breakfast - omelette, toast and cup of coffee. Not all that different from the breakfast he ate at home. Except it was somehow very different. While reaching for the coffee, Seto glanced around. He usually ate his breakfast in his dining room - which was nothing like Yugi's kitchen. And Yugi's small dining table was nothing like the long table in Seto dining room. Somehow the simplicity of all around him made the breakfast more… enjoyable.

_'Ugh… Too early for this,'_ Seto mused and sipped the coffee. It wasn't the brand he usually drank but it was strong, black and without sugar. Just like he preferred it. Shaking his head he reached for the nearest piece of toast and bit into it. For some reason the taste of it made his ears burn. Yugi had even buttered it for him.

"Are we joining the land of the living now?" Yugi asked with amusement while pushing the wheelchair into the kitchen. Seto grunted in answer around the toast, making the other man chuckle. "Not yet I see. Well, take your time," he said, pushing the chair to the counter where he had a tea cup waiting for him. Then he took a sip of it, watching Seto as if he had never had so much entertainment in his breakfast table.

Answering the amused look with a flat stare, Seto swallowed the toast in his mouth. "You are being entirely too cheery," he said dryly. "Stop it immediately."

Yugi just laughed at him, leaning back in his wheelchair. "I can't help it. You look like nothing you're supposed to. I mean, come on," he made a grand gesture at Seto. "Mr High and Mighty himself, with a bed hair, only dressed to pair of boxers… and on top of that you're acting like grumpy bear woken from hibernation. You look cute. This is just hilarious."

"Jump off a bridge and die, Mutou," Seto growled, bringing the coffee cup to his lips before stopping. "Oh, wait, I forgot. You can't. Jump that is."

Yugi just grinned at him. "With that sort of hair, you could say anything and you'd still look cute. Cheers," he raised his tea cup as if making toast and then took a drink.

Seto glared at him before stopping to stare at Yugi's arm. Then his eyes skipped to the shopkeepers other arm. They were both slightly curved with muscles. "What the hell?" he asked, lowering his coffee mug. "Have you taken testosterone shots or something?"

Yugi blinked and glanced at his own arms. Then he chuckled, making a fist with his hand and easily bringing out the curved bicep. "Nah. I exercise now and then," he answered, lowering his tea cup to rest against the hand rest of the wheelchair. "It takes muscle to move this chair around. And when you lose pieces of your body, you gain a need to take care of what you have left. Well, I did anyway."

Seto just stared at him for a moment. Every time he had seen Yugi previously, he had always worn long sleeved shirts - button up shirts usually - so he hadn't noticed the arms. Then the president of the Kaiba Corporation narrowed his eyes. "Don't tell me you have wash board abs too," he snorted.

Yugi raised his eyebrows before grinning and grapping the hem of his shirt. Lifting his up, he showed his well shaped flat stomach. "There ya go," he said happily. "Satisfied?"

"Shocked," Seto muttered, quickly looking away. Yugi was looking entirely too good considering the early hour. "You're making me believe that you actually might be male after all."

"Oh shut it," Yugi chuckled before raking his eyes over Seto's form. "You know, having you half naked in my kitchen is a very nice way of starting the day," he grinned. "I see that you've done your share of exercises as well."

"I swim regularly," Seto muttered with a shake of his head. "I have a pool in the mansion," he explained when Yugi gave him a surprised look. "Also I of course have my private gym but I don't use it that often. Not as often as I use the pool anyway."

"Hah. Must be nice to be rich and have such things at your disposal. I do my muscle exercises by crunches and push ups and such," Yugi shook his head before setting his tea cup to the counter. "Eat your food," he then said, lowering his hands to the hand rims of the chair and pushing himself towards the living room. "I'll get your clothes - and you better appreciate what I did, I even ironed your damn tie!"

"I didn't ask you to," Seto answered, feeling a bit self conscious about having someone - whom he wasn't paying to do it - doing something like this for him.

"I figured that it would be better than having you whine about having to show up at work on ruffled suit," Yugi chuckled, while bringing the clothing to the kitchen. "Besides it gave me something to do. I usually wake up around eight."

"Hmm…" Seto hummed, turning to his breakfast. Not quite sure how to take this… care Yugi was lavishing him with, he concentrated onto eating. Soon enough the breakfast was polished.

"Let me do that," Yugi said when he got up to put the dishes to the sink. "You just go wash up - and brush that unruly mop of yours. I left you a clean toothbrush to the bathroom sink too," the shorter man said calmly while handing the clothing to Seto and then moving to clean the table. "I had it delivered with my groceries while you were sleeping."

Seto gave him a mildly miffed look before walking out of the kitchen with a shake of his head. From the bathroom he found brand new toothbrush, still in its packet, waiting for him. While breaking the packet and rummaging through Yugi's stuff in search for toothpaste, he couldn't help but wonder. _'If we would live together, would he always be like this?'_

Soon he had washed his face and combed his had with Yugi's comp. Then he quickly dressed himself. While tying his tie, Seto had the strangest sensation of comfort that seemed to come from his clothing. Usually he gave no thought to them - as long as they looked good, that was enough for him. But the fact that Yugi had cleaned and ironed them somehow made them feel warm.

When he returned to the kitchen, Yugi had already cleaned the place and was just wiping the dinner table clean of what little mess Seto had accidentally made. The invalid glanced up and smiled. "I guess I'm not completely worthless with ironing," he mused, raking his eyes over Seto and then glancing the clock. "You ready to go then?"

"Yeah, I guess I am," Seto answered, adjusting the cuff of his shirt.

"After work, are you going to go back to the mansion or…?" Yugi trailed away. "Because if you're going to plan on bunking here I suggest you get yourself some extra clothes and such. I washed yours this time, but don't expect me do laundry every time you happen to sleep over."

"You wouldn't mind if I would stay here longer?" Seto asked with surprise. _'With all he has done this morning, it's as if he's happy to see me go but… then he says something like that…'_

"Of course not," Yugi chuckled, shaking his head. "I enjoy your company."

"Then… I might stay a bit longer. I'll call you later today about it, alright?"

"Alright," Yugi said and then wheeled closer before Seto could turn to leave. "You're not going anywhere without giving me a kiss," the shorter man said. "I've been so nice to you this morning, I demand compensation."

Seto snorted. "And here I thought you had a business sense. You either ask the compensation before hand or make official document about it. You don't just do something and ask payment for it -" his words were cut short as Yugi grabbed hold of his tie and tugged him down.

"Shut it," the shopkeeper grinned throwing a single arm around Seto's neck and pulling him into a kiss. The fact that they were both smirking made the kiss somehow very pleasant. Once the short kiss was over, the smaller man pushed taller one away. "Now go. Go and dazzle your brother and his fiancé with your amazing business sense."

Seto chuckled walked out of the kitchen with a shake of his head. _'I wouldn't mind having more mornings like this,'_ he mused while reaching for his coat and shoes.

x

Mokuba frowned as his eyes wandered over the most advanced laboratory of the Kaiba Corporation. As Miho sat down to do something with a computer, Mokuba's mind was taken to the time of before the right between him and his brother had happened. Long before that. Back when they had been working in this very laboratory, working to achieve perfection with the Duel Disk.

_'Things have changed so much since then,'_ the black haired young man thought with a darkening frown. _'After Yugi stopped duelling so did Seto, and then he was just concerned about the company. At times it seemed like there was nothing else in his world by the Kaiba Corporation. Working day in and out even back when he was in college…'_

Of course his brother had always been like that, that was how Seto worked. Mokuba's brother had been always one of those people who can't sit still. He always had to be doing something, working to create something new and incredible or pushing at his own limits, trying to make himself better. Duel Monsters for Seto had been a heaven's sent at a time - with Yugi there, Seto had been concentrating mostly onto his own limits and overcoming them, onto playing and being the best… but when Yugi stopped, back ten year ago, eventually so had Seto. And then there had been no playing in the Kaiba Corporation or at the mansion that had once been Mokuba's home. There had only been working.

The young man shifted slightly on the comfortable chair he was sitting. It had been strange to spend a night in the mansion again after year of being away. These days Mokuba lived in more… modest home. His and Miho's apartment had only two bedrooms, living room, kitchen and bathroom and it was enough for them. Living modestly had enabled them to use more money to pay her debts - whilst Miho had been paying lion's share of them, Mokuba had been the one to enable it. He had paid the rent and the electric bill and all that so that Miho could use her money for the debts.

_'Thank gods they're done with now,'_ Mokuba mused with a scowl. He had never met Miho's father and never would but he hated the bastard as much as he hated the memory of Kaiba Gozaburo. Miho's father had taken the same approach to his defeat as Gozaburo, and like Gozaburo he had left all to his progeny. But in that bastard's case, it hadn't been money. Miho had been paying for her father's suicide for over dozen years now.

_'And here I thought that life would be easier once the debts would be dealt with,'_ Mokuba mused with annoyance, raising his hand to rub it across his forehead. _'But no. Seto has to pull this charity project crap on us. That bastard brother of mine doesn't probably even realise that Miho quit her job for this. It's easy for me, I'm a freelancer so I can work when ever I want to on what ever I want to, but Miho's a doctor. And doctors can't exactly take long leaves when ever they feel like it…'_

They had enough savings to keep the apartment even though they were back in Domino, but if this charity project crap would last long, things would get difficult. _'Seto better pay Miho for this. And he better pay well,'_ Mokuba thought with mild anger. Then he glanced around in the laboratory. _'Where is that bastard anyway? He wasn't in the mansion last night, that's for sure.'_

He and Miho had taken a walk around his brother's estate last evening. It had been the first chance for Mokuba to show Miho the house where he had grown up, so he had taken advantage of it. While having the walk, he hadn't seen lights in any of the rooms Seto could've been - not in the living room which Seto preferred, not in the home office where he spend most of his time and not in his bedroom. Mokuba could've shrugged it off as Seto working in late at the office, but it had already been nine back then.

Seto had a rule about the company - no one was allowed into the office building after eight o'clock, other than the night guards. Not even the president himself. The rule had been established few years back when they had had a bad situation with spies. A rival company had sneaked in their drones to try and get the secret behind hologram technology. Despite the fact that their enemies had tried to copy the technology for years, Kaiba Corp was still the only company that could manufacture holograms. The spies had been caught and dealt with, and afterwards the night time rule had been established. If the night guards saw anyone other than themselves in the company after eight, they had the permission to use force on them.

_'So Seto wasn't at home and he couldn't be at office that late. I'm pretty sure he drove away from the company little before we did anyway,'_ Mokuba frowned slightly. _'So where did he go? Surely not to hotel. Seto hates hotels…'_ The possibility that his brother disliked his presence so much that he would sleep in hotel instead was slightly troubling.

"Where is that asshole?" the long haired young man finally muttered, giving the automated doors a dirty look. Seto was late. Seto was never late.

"Mokuba, he is your brother," Miho sighed, looking up from the computer. "Do you have to call him names?"

"I don't have to. I want to. Beside it's the truth, he is an asshole. The biggest one in the planet at that," the young man growled, folding his hands. He glared at the hologram designer. "Whipping up a half-assed charity project like this just to meddle in our lives…"

"To me it seems like he genuinely wants to complete the Limit Breaker," Miho answered calmly. "He worked very hard to re-design the sensors yesterday - you were there and you saw it for yourself. Why would he work that hard if this all was just something to make a fool out of me?"

"He could be just acting," Mokuba snorted. "If he wants to, my brother can be the greatest actor in the world."

"Somehow I doubt that," she sighed, shaking her head and turning her attention back to the monitor. "Whether he is serious or not doesn't matter, though. As little as I know about these things, even I can see that the technology he is planning to create is plausible. And I want to make it into reality - if not for the sake of our family relationships then for the sake of all amputees out there."

Mokuba frowned. Miho was serious and hopeful about the project. She had had plenty of patients who were amputees and she had even written articles about the impact amputation had on human physique and nervous systems. Mokuba had read some of the articles and they were quite fascinating. But… her seriousness and hopefulness made it just worse.

_'No way can this thing be real,'_ Mokuba frowned. _'Why would Seto want to create advanced artificial legs of all things? It's just… farfetched,'_ his frown darkened as he looked upon the woman he was going to marry. _'I bet Seto researched Miho's past and found out her occupation and interests. He cooked up this half-assed charity project as bait - and she took it very willingly. Now she doesn't even want to consider that this all could be just elaborate way to make her look bad.'_

"You shouldn't put so much trust in this," Mokuba finally said to her. "I doubt it will ever work."

"I won't give up hope until I'm completely sure that it's impossible," Miho answered calmly, reminding Mokuba why he had fell in love with her in the beginning. She had strength of will that easily overcame Mokuba's own and rivalled with Seto's. On top of that, she never took opinions, rumours or second hand information as fact, not unless she had the hard evidence to support them. In that she was much like Seto in fact.

Despite everything, Mokuba found himself stifling a smile. _'My stubborn lady,'_ he thought fondly. Then sound of the automatic door opening caught his attention. _'Ah. President himself graces us with his presence at last!'_ he thought with frown.

Seto was talking in phone with annoyed look in his face. "Yes you moron, I know that now. You can thank that idiot secretary of mine; she's the one who managed to trash my schedule. You can't very well expect me to keep track of you insects and times when I'm supposed to meet you, can you? I don't have time for trivial things like that," the tall man spat to the phone while striding up to the hologram design table. Snapping a memory card into it, he started the table. Then he folded his hands as a hologram folder of files opened. "Well considering how much I don't give a crap about your little problems… very well, fine. I'll be right there and you better have a good presentation ready for me."

_'Ah, the wondrous relationship between employer and his employees,'_ Mokuba rolled his eyes as his brother slapped the phone shut. _'Makes me wonder how come Seto has as many workers as he does.'_

"Nosaka, get over here," the President of the Kaiba Corporation snapped, grapping the modification pen and opening the hologram folder to reveal it to be full of personal files of Kaiba Corp's workers.

"Don't talk to my fiancé like that," Mokuba glared at his brother even as Miho sat up and walked up to the hologram table.

Seto glanced at him with annoyance in his eyes before turning to the woman. "These are all the workers currently working in Kaiba Corporation," he said, opening one of the files to reveal hologram image of the worker and a floating list of the worker's education, experience, skills and achievements. "You will select a team to work with you on this project. Programmers, engineers, designers… what ever you need."

While Mokuba levelled his brother's neck with steady glare, Miho looked at the hologram files with shock. "I'm supposed to select the staff? But… I don't know your workers and I don't know what will be needed - I'm not that good with technology and…"

"Then Mokuba will help you," Seto answered, throwing a glare at Mokuba. "He knows the workers and should understand enough to know what you will need."

"I'm not helping you with this charity project scam," Mokuba scowled. "It's enough that you have my fiancé at your beck and call. I'm not falling to your schemes."

"Then I'll pay you," Seto rolled his eyes with frustration. "Name your number and hurry up with it. I'm supposed to be half across the damn building right now."

Mokuba blinked and the narrowed his eyes. "Thirty thousand yen per hour. Same for Miho." He said it mostly to test the limits of his brother's scam. How far would Seto take this little project of his?

"Well, you certainly are pushing it, aren't you?" Seto raised his eyebrows and then narrowed them. "With that sort of wages you better make it worth my while, you brat," he said with a shake of his head while turning around to leave. "You now work for me, so don't dare slack off, Mokuba. I'll find out if you have," he pointed at the hidden cameras and then left.

Mokuba stared after him with shock.

"Thirty thousand yen, Mokuba?" Miho asked with shock. "Per hour?"

"I… didn't expect him to agree," the man turned his eyes to his fiancé. Then he quickly sat up and walked over to the projector. Seto was excellent liar and even better schemer but he did not play around with money. If he was willing to pay that sort of wages, then there was more than just a scheme behind the Limit Breaker project. And it had to be serious indeed for Seto to not haggle about money.

"Let's select the team," Mokuba murmured, now even more confused than before. Charity project? Suddenly he wasn't sure if that was it at all.

x

Yugi sighed while leaning back in his wheelchair. It was already seven o'clock and he had closed the shop hours ago. Seto wasn't back yet - though he would be. Around lunch Seto had had his driver deliver few suitcases full of clothing and personal items, so Yugi was rather sure that he was getting a semi permanent house-mate soon enough.

_'I wonder what's keeping him,'_ the shop owner wondered turning his eyes to the kitchen window. _'The project he's working on with Miho? I never got around asking what it was about anyway or what Miho's specialised expertise was…'_

There was music coming from the kitchen's radio and Yugi had a cup of warm tea cradled between his hands. It was night no different from his usual nights - this was how he usually spent most of his evenings… but somehow it felt empty. He had expected Seto to be here by now. And the lack of the other's presence was leaving him out of sorts.

_'I miss him,'_ Yugi thought with a sad snort. _'He was here just this morning he slept beside me the last night, we spend the entire yesterday evening together and already I miss him. I'm growing too accustomed to his presence…'_

It was wonderful when Seto was there. As clichéd as it was, there seemed to be more colour in the house when the man was there. And Yugi enjoyed the other's presence like he had forgotten he could, but it was scary as well. If their relationship wouldn't work as well as he wanted too… if Seto would leave him… what would he do then?

_'Well, it has been working pretty well,'_ Yugi mused with a smile. _'We got along quite… well yesterday. And were only in the beginning of this relationship…'_ shifting into more comfortable position, Yugi took a sip of his tea. _'He must like the time we spend together too to be willing sleep in here…'_

Yugi closed his eyes, looking back to the last night. It had been surprisingly easy to fall asleep at Seto's side - it had been rather comfortable actually. The morning hadn't been that nice - waking up to phantom limp sensations was never nice - but spending time preparing Seto for the day had been fun. Who would've thought that the man was so adorable in mornings? Snarky, but adorable.

_'Not too bad looking either,'_ Yugi thought with slight grin. Long, lithe body with well defined muscles… Seto had certainly taken care of his physique in the past years. He would've been right at home posing for some magazine with that sort of body - though he never would, which made Yugi almost gleeful. _'Mine, all mine…'_ he chuckled in his mind, turning his attention to the window again.

Seeing a car driving in to his parking lot, Yugi glanced down. _'Oh, he's here,'_ he though while quickly setting the tea cup down and turning the wheelchair around. _'I wonder if he has had any dinner. Well, if he hasn't then I'll make something for him…'_

Wheeling out of the kitchen, down his tiny hall and to the elevator, Yugi started the elevator just when Set rang the doorbell. Smiling slightly, he waited until the elevator stopped and then wheeled to the backroom of his shop and then out of it. Seto was waiting outside his door as usual, holding his metallic briefcase and what looked like laptop case.

"Oh good, you don't have the cane," Seto said as Yugi opened the door to him. "You can't hit me for being late this time."

"Well, we didn't establish a curfew so you're technically not late," Yugi smiled while backing away from the door. "You're working long hours, though."

"Had to," Seto sighed while dropping the briefcase so that he could get one hand free. Then he closed and locked the door. "The DC3 release is in few days and thanks to my idiot of an assistant I had forgotten all about the things I needed to do before the release - and of course I had no knowledge about the dozen meetings I was supposed to be in yesterday and today. Took me all day to catch up with the work I didn't know I had to do."

"Sounds like lot of work," Yugi smiled sympathetically while taking the briefcase and setting it to the empty footrests of his wheelchair. _'Heh, some use for them finally,'_ he thought while stretching his left stump over the briefcase. "Are you hungry?" he then asked while turning the chair around. "I've already eaten but I can whip up something for you if you haven't had dinner."

"I ate in the company cafeteria but I could eat a sandwich or two," Seto admitted, following him out of the store and to the backroom.

Yugi glanced at him as he rubbed his neck. There was a mild frown on the taller one's face, not the sort of annoyed frown Seto usually had but frown of discomfort. "Is your neck stiff?" Yugi asked.

"There is stiff and then there is this," Seto grunted. "Damn it, last thing I need is a migraine."

_'He has migraine?'_ Yugi wondered with sympathy. "I can give you a massage if that will help," he offered. Seto send a disbelieving look at him making him grin sheepishly while backing into the elevator. "I'm not professional or anything but I did spend two months in hospital and they sometimes had a massager come over and help me with the muscle cramps that followed the rehabilitation… I think I picked up a thing or two from those sessions."

Seto looked at him for a moment and then pressed the button to make the elevator move. "Alright then," he just said, though there was an undertone of gratitude in his voice.

Yugi smiled. Soon the elevator stopped and Seto stepped out to take off his shoes and coat. While he did so, Yugi made his way to the kitchen where he opened the fridge. Once Seto joined him, he had already taken out all the necessary items and started making sandwiches for the other man.

"If you're busy with the DC3 release, can you work with that project you started with Miho?" Yugi asked while slicing the bread.

"Not right now," Seto sighed with annoyance. "I hired Mokuba, though it was rather accidental. He and Nosaka were supposed to select a team to work with them from my company's workers. I don't know if they did do it, though, I didn't have the time to check on them later. They'll be working on the project by themselves for now." He shook his head. "I'll of course keep an eye on the project but I can't work in it myself for a while."

"Is it an important project for company?" Yugi asked with slight disinterest while making the sandwiches.

"It is for me," Seto answered calmly.

"I hope that it will work out then," the shorter man glanced at the taller one with a smile. "Mokuba worked in the company too before your fight, right? So he should know what to do, right?"

"I hope so," the taller man nodded. "And if they can't I'll just kick them out and start from scratch."

_'Liar,'_ Yugi chuckled. _'I am getting better at telling when he's bluffing and when he's being serious, though.'_ Soon enough he had gotten the sandwiches made. After handing them to the other man, he reached for his tea only to find that it was already cold. With a sigh he poured it to the sink before getting himself another cupful.

Watching how the taller man quickly finished the sandwiches, Yugi leaned back in his chair. "Do you think you'll be late tomorrow too?" he then asked.

"Probably," Seto nodded. "I should be here before eight, though.

"Good. I'll know to fix you a snack then," Yugi smiled at the way the other man rolled his eyes but he could see the slightest smile on the corner of the man's lips. With a smile the shorter man tuned to the counter and quickly started to put the food away again. Once he was done and Seto had finished his snack, Yugi glanced at the other man. "Want me to deal with your neck now?"

Seto smirked crookedly. "It sounds like you're planning to wring my neck or something," he said. "Here?"

"Living room," Yugi chuckled. "I imagine you'd be more comfortable on the couch."

"Hm," the taller man nodded and then walked out of the kitchen, Yugi following after him. "Should I take my shirt off? Isn't that how massages work?"

"Yeah, I guess it would get in the way. It'll keep your shirt from getting ruffled at least - and after the morning, I'll never say anything against the possibility of you taking your shirt off," Yugi grinned while wheeling the chair beside the couch and lifting himself off it. The taller man rolled his eyes but undressed the shirt. "Would you lie down to your stomach?" Yugi asked with a chuckle. "I'm not tall enough to reach you comfortably otherwise."

"Weakling," Seto said with a smirk but he did as asked without further complaint.

Yugi merely smiled at the words while shifting so that he was sitting beside Seto's waist. While turning so that he was sitting on the couch sideways, his right leg pressing against Seto's side, he congratulated himself for suggesting the massage. It gave him excuse to get his hands onto the other man.

As he reached for the other man's neck carefully, he didn't notice them at first. Seto's skin was tight over his stiff muscles and Yugi didn't at first realise how strange it felt from here and there. But then, as he begun to carefully smooth his fingers over the stiffness underneath the other man's skin, he started to frown. Even though he spent a moment raking his eyes over Seto's back few times, it still took him a moment to notice them. They were the same colour as Seto's skin and Yugi could barely feel them under his fingers, but they were still there, covering the taller man's entire back like a web.

"Seto… Your back…" Yugi stroked his hand down from the stiff neck across the shoulder blades and over the spine. "Why is your back littered with scars?"

The other man's entire form turned tense for a moment and the silence was heavy. Then Seto shifted so that he was leaning to his elbows, turning to look at Yugi over his shoulders. "They're still here?" the taller man asked quietly with a frown.

"Still?" Yugi asked with a frown. "Seto, who did this to you?"

The taller man's frown darkened as he reached one hand back to touch his own back in difficult angle. "I think you know," Seto answered, turning his eyes away with annoyed sigh. "It happened occasionally. When I didn't perform as well as he wanted to, when I didn't master something as quickly as he expected me to… Whipping was my punishment."

"Whip…!" Yugi swallowed, turning his horrified gaze back to the taller man's back. When he looked at it like this, he could see nothing wrong. But when he reached out to touch, they were still there, feeling just slightly coarse under his fingers. "That man was a monster."

"No doubt," the taller man nodded, sighing softy and laying back down. "The wounds were never bad, really. Some took longer to heal than others, but they all healed. I didn't… realise that they left scars."

Giving the other man a sad look, Yugi wondered how knew about this. Would've Seto ever told him if he hadn't felt the scars? Probably not. "Does Mokuba know?" Yugi then asked, knowing better than to take insult.

"He suspected. I never told him though."

Closing his eyes for a moment Yugi took in a slow breath. _'No wonder Seto turned out the way he did. No wonder he was always so hard to relate to,'_ he mused sadly. With a sigh he leaned down and gently kissed one of the many unseen scars. As Seto shivered under him, Yugi pulled back and began to massage the other's scarred back with tenderness he doubted the abused skin had ever experienced.

x

That morning scene is possibly my favourite bit of the entire story so far. This chapter hasn't been proofread since I couldn't catch my muse in time. I might edit it later if I have the energy. And be warned, I most likely won't post on time next week.


	11. XI chapter

**XI chapter**

_'This is so incredible,'_ Yugi thought to himself while watching over Seto. Seto had been more or less living in his house for few days now but Yugi still stopped to stare him every morning, still amazed to find the man in his bed. The taller man was still sleeping and now Yugi knew that it required a loud alarm clock - or lot of nagging - strong coffee and usually a shower as well for the man to wake up properly. And Yugi also knew that in the morning Seto had always some difficulties finding his clothing - he usually had them set ready by his servants at the mansion.

With a smile Yugi leaned his chin against his arm while reaching out to brush the thick brown hair from the other man's eyes. The shopkeeper had made it a habit to waking up a bit before Seto did and getting everything ready for the other man. It usually meant readying his clothing and making him breakfast. It wasn't much of a task, though; usually Yugi's mornings were slow and boring so getting Seto ready gave him something to do. On top of that he had the pleasure of watching how the other man struggled himself awake. Seto wasn't exactly a morning person.

_'Today is Friday. I wonder if he will stay here for tonight too. He doesn't have work tomorrow or the day after tomorrow…'_ Yugi pursed his lips thoughtfully. He didn't work on weekends either. _'Spending that much time together will be… different, if he plans to stay here that is. So far we've still had enough space to breath, with him going away to work at his company and all…'_

Not that Yugi minded having Seto around. Even though Seto had claimed a corner of Yugi's living room for himself and his laptop - and more or less snarled every time Yugi got too close to the laptop - it wasn't bothersome at all. Yugi had even made space in his closet for Seto's clothing though he wasn't entirely sure if the other man had noticed. The cup that was now claimed as Seto's coffee cup and the taller man's personal items scattered in the bathroom… they added a new flavour to Yugi's daily life. And he liked that flavour a lot.

_'I wonder if he likes staying here, though. He usually lives in mansion with lots of space and all…'_ Yugi stared at the other for a moment before chuckling and pulling away. _'If he didn't like it here, he wouldn't be here. Seto isn't the kind of guy who goes through any sort of discomfort if there is a better option.'_

After pushing himself up and stretching, Yugi reached for his wheelchair which was in its usual place right next to the bed. As he hoisted himself onto it, he wasn't surprised that Seto didn't even budge. _'That man can sleep like a log at times,'_ Yugi mused, throwing the taller man a fond smile. Turning his attention to the end of the bed Yugi picked up the clothing Seto had worn in the previous day before wheeling out of the room. _'Though with the stress he has been put under lately, he has the right to…_' With a yawn he headed to the bathroom where the put the clothing aside. He would deal with them later.

While brushing his teeth, he turned his mind to the two sources of Seto's stress. The DC3 release and Mokuba. For the last few days, almost all of Seto's time at the company had been apparently taken by the DC3 release. Yugi hadn't even though that so much work was involved with a console release, but apparently there was lot to do. The console would be finally released the next Monday, after that Seto's schedule would probably ease up… but then there was Mokuba, Miho and the project they were working on.

_'I still haven't thought to ask what it's about. Well, I'll find out sooner or later. None of Kaiba Corporation's projects tend to stay secret for that long,'_ Yugi mused after finishing up in the bathroom and making his way to the kitchen. _'Seto seems serious about it, though. It annoys him more than little that he can't work in it with Miho and Mokuba yet. Mokuba probably has it handled, but… it is Seto's project and he likes to hold control over things that are his…'_

Making his way to the closet next to the bathroom, Yugi selected clothing for his house mate. Seto had worn a pale suit yesterday, so Yugi selected a different one this time. Dark blue suit with hint electric purple in its shade, matching tie but not too matching, clean button-up shirt and clean pair of black socks. Chuckling a bit at how much effort he put into selecting Seto's clothing, Yugi wheeled to the bedroom and left the clothing by the bed. After eating and cleaning up Seto would be able to just pick the clothing from where Yugi had left them.

_'Alright, breakfast next,'_ Yugi thought while making his way to the kitchen. Turning the radio on, he turned to the fridge to see what he could make. There had been no leftovers in their last dinner, so Yugi decided to go with rice omelette and toast - along with Seto's precious coffee, of course. Yugi had never really liked traditional Japanese breakfast of rice, miso soup and fried fish. His grandfather had preferred western foods - taste he had picked up in his travels - and it had been passed onto Yugi. Thankfully it seemed like Seto had similar tastes.

Soon enough the breakfast was ready and so was the coffee. After setting the omelette, toast and coffee ready for his housemate, Yugi headed back to his bedroom to wake the man up. _'And now the part I like the most…'_ Yugi grinned to himself, wheeling the chair beside the bed and reaching out to shake the sleeping man. "Seto," Yugi called softly. "Seeto… wake up…"

"G'way," the taller man grunted, turning away from Yugi. Then he buried his face to the sheets and threw his hands around his head as if to block the world out.

Yugi grinned at the sight. _'Gods, that's just adorable,'_ he thought with amusement while leaning forward. Seto's move had revealed large portion of his back and Yugi was quick to take advantage of it. Walking his fingers up the bared spine, Yugi brought his hand up to Seto's hair. Brushing the strands of hair out of his way, he bent down to kiss the sensitive skin just in the back of the other man's neck. "Wakey wakey," Yugi whispered with a grin, revelling in the way he managed to make the taller man shudder.

"Yugi," the taller man grumbled, tensing his shoulders in attempt to protect the vulnerable neck. "I hate you in the morning."

"Aww, that's too bad," Yugi grinned, bringing his lips down to the back of the other man's ear. "Because I just adore you in the morning."

"Ugh, I've noticed. Stop that," Seto grunted, shuddering again. When Yugi just chuckled, the taller man rolled to his back to block Yugi's access. "Are you always cheery first thing in the morning?" he asked annoyed while brushing his hand over his eyes.

"Not always. Just every time I get to wake you," Yugi grinned, brushing his hand over Seto's well defined chest gently. Then he pressed a small kiss to the other man's cheek before pulling away - mercilessly taking Seto's duvet with him. "Get up. Your breakfast waits you."

Unhappily the taller man sat up before slipping out of the bed. As he made his way out of the room, Yugi allowed his gaze to follow him. _'There is no better way to start a morning. Definitely not,'_ the shopkeeper thought happily before turning and starting to make the bed.

Seto had already eaten half of his omelette by the time Yugi made his way to the kitchen. "Are you going to work late today too?" Yugi asked while turning his attention to his own omelette.

"Probably later than I usually work in Fridays, but I'll try get out before seven at least," the president of the Kaiba Corporation answered, taking a sip of coffee. "If they know what's best for them, the idiots working for me won't bother me in the weekend."

Yugi smiled. _'So, he will spend the weekend here too,'_ he thought with slightest warmth spreading through him. "Maybe we could do something special this weekend," Yugi mused out loud, looking at the other for a moment before turning his attention to the food. "We've been a… couple for a while but we haven't exactly gone out together." The dinners they had eaten out couldn't be called dates really.

Seto gave him a surprised look before leaning back in his seat. "You want to… go out on a date?" he then asked, with slightly troubled look in his face.

Yugi glanced up to him and then chuckled at his expression. "Never mind," he said, waving the matter aside with his hand. "It was just a passing thought, it's not that important." Sending weekend just with Seto was good enough - the other man would probably spend most of the weekend working on his laptop anyway.

The taller man gave him a thoughtful frown before turning to his breakfast. He finished it in silence before glancing at the clock and getting up. "I'll take a quick shower," he said and at Yugi's nod headed out of the kitchen. Soon the water began running and after finishing his own breakfast, Yugi gathered the dishes and took them to the sink.

_'He's been here for a while and it seems like he's going to stay a while longer - at least until the rift between him and Mokuba will be repaired…'_ Yugi mused while wiping the table clean. _'And probably even after he goes back to the mansion, he'll be visiting me now and then… Maybe I should…'_

He turned a frown towards one of the drawers where he kept random important things. After a moment of contemplation, he wheeled the chair closer to it and opened it. Amongst some papers, medicine and such there was a ring with few keys in it. Taking it to his hand he selected one certain key and took it off the ring. _'I'm getting a bit tired of getting down and up again every time he gets here after I've already closed the shop…'_

Seto was quick with his shower and after it he headed to the bedroom to pull his suit on. Once he came out, he was more or less ready for the day, making final adjustments to his tie. Yugi smiled at him, slightly sad that Seto's adorable bed hair was now neatly combed. But it wasn't that bad. Seto made suits look very good.

"It's time for me to get going," the taller man said after getting his briefcase - the only thing he readied for himself before hand. After pulling his shoes on, he glanced at the other man. "I have a meeting exactly at eight, so…"

"Of course," Yugi said, pushing the chair closer as Seto obediently waited for what had became a morning ritual. Yet even though he knew what the other wanted, Yugi still had to grab his tie and pull him down. After enjoying his brief morning kiss, Yugi pulled back but didn't let the other straighten himself yet. "Here," the shopkeeper said, showing the key. "I want you to take this."

"This is…?" Seto frowned at the key Yugi placed to his hands before glancing at the other. He knew what it was but apparently he had to verify it.

"Key to the front door," Yugi smiled. "This way I don't have to go down to open the door for you."

The taller man stared at him for a moment before fisting his hand around the key. Pressing a brief kiss against the shorter mans forehead he stood up. "Have a good day, Yugi," he then said before turning to head to the elevator.

"You too," Yugi smiled. "Try not to fire anyone," he then added, remembering Seto's tale of the poor clumsy secretary who had recently gotten the boot.

Seto smirked at him just before entering the elevator. "I'll try."

Chuckling after him, Yugi leaned back in his chair. _'Now Seto has the key to my home,'_ he mused with a happy smile. Craning his neck to see the kitchen clock, he sighed. He still had hour and half to go before opening the shop. Turning the chair around, he made his way to the living room. _'Might as well do some exercises…'_

x

"Sit on the chair, Mokuba," Miho said sternly, her hands firmly settled on her hip. When the young man merely gave a suspicious look at the chair and took a small step away from it, she sighed. "It's not going to bite you. Now sit down."

"I'm not worried about it biting me," Mokuba said with unease, giving the chair a look of distrust. Sure, he had had his part in pulling it together - he and Miho and all the people in their team - but that didn't make the chair in any way attractive. With the spiky-looking sensors and dozens of little wires going out of the chair, it looked like something out of movie involving a mad scientist and morally questionable experiments. It even had a helmet of sort, that too adorned with spikes. "I'm more worried about radiation and electricity and such… being stabbed to death by the sensors also came in mind…"

"Oh for goodness sake. You made the thing mostly yourself, it doesn't give any radiation!" Miho said with aggravation. "And you know as well as I do that it won't give you any electric shocks - it has only enough power for the sensors. Now sit down."

"We don't know for sure that it doesn't give any radiation -"

"Sit down, Mokuba," Miho said with a slight frown, tick just under her right eye. "Now."

"Ah, alright," the man muttered, throwing a slight look of trepidation towards the chair. As he sat down he saw that most of the staff working in the project was giving him amused look. "Stop that," he glared at them while trying not to lean onto the sharp sensors that would soon be monitoring his nerve signals. "I'd like see you sitting in this contraption of doom."

"Calm down, sweetheart, the chair isn't going to blow up," Miho said calmly to him before glancing at the workers. "Heat it up."

"Don't say it like that, it makes it seem like you're about to fry me," Mokuba whined with slight discomfort, wincing at the sound of one of the workers turning the chair's power on. Of course, there was no sound or sensation, nothing seemed to change. But Mokuba was even more painfully aware of the spikes just finger's width away from his neck and the helmet like top of the chair seemed to lean closer to him.

Shifting with discomfort in the chair, Mokuba turned to look at the woman who was to be his wife - who was playing the part of the mad scientist in this one. Miho, along with two workers who had worked with the sensors, were peering at the screens that were linked to the chair through a processor. There was a serious look on Miho's face that told a tall tale of the chair's success. None so far.

Then her eyebrows rose sharply and she looked up. "We have something," she informed with a brief smile.

As sounds of relief and triumph echoed in the room, Mokuba kept his eyes on the woman. "Anything understandable yet?" he asked. His neck was starting to ache thanks to his attempts of keeping his head still.

"Not yet, but this is only the first attempt of using the sensors," Miho smiled. "We weren't expecting anything clear just yet. Move your legs."

Slightly surprised by the sudden command, Mokuba turned his attention to his legs. Then, holding onto the hand rests of the metal chair to keep himself from moving, he raised his legs. Then he moved them around almost randomly while rotating his ankles. "Are you getting it?" he asked.

"I'm getting a lot of static, but yes, there was definite change when you moved," Miho smiled with satisfaction. "It will take some time before I'll be able to tell the nerves responsible for conscious movement apart from everything else, but it's possible," she glanced at the others in the room. "For now, we're successful."

"Ah, nice," Mokuba sighed, glancing at her with awkward smile. "Can I get up?"

With amused smile the woman glanced at the staff. "Does anyone else want to sit in the chair?" Miho asked. When everyone quickly shook their heads and stepped back, she turned her smile to Mokuba. "That would be no."

"If I didn't love you so much I'd be slightest bit annoyed with you," Mokuba sighed but remained still. "Though I'm not going to be much use to anyone sitting here. I should be designing the mechanics of the legs - or the hardware. I'm being wasted sitting here."

"We'll get you a table so that you can work while sitting, but until we'll get another willing test subject, you're going to be the one sitting in the chair," Miho said calmly while sitting down and starting to type something - probably trying to make the computer tell the difference between the signals. "Move your feet."

"I'm not exactly willing either," Mokuba muttered but did as told. When the nearest workers gave him some amused looks, he scowled. "Get me a table and a computer!" he barked at them, not least bit appreciative of the smirks they gave him. It was all good humour, but it didn't make him like it any more.

_'I need to add this to the wedding vows. "In experiment and in science", rather than "in sickness and in health"…'_ Mokuba thought with morbid amusement while the table was brought to him. _'For people like us, that would be more appropriate…'_ Hearing the sound of the doors opening he glanced at them. Seeing the man who was walking in, he frowned. "Been a while side we last saw you. Been busy, big brother?" Mokuba asked with a cutting tone.

Seto gave him a slightly annoyed look before taking in the chair he was sitting in. Frown appeared to his face before he strode up to Miho. "You got the sensors working?" he asked leaning in to look at the screen.

"We got them working. Adjusting them to pick the certain signals we want them to pick will be slightly harder," Miho said, motioning something on the screen. "Right now we're getting all of his nerve signals - everything from what his senses broadcast to his brain to his bowel functions. It's a bit mangled right now, but I think I'll be able to tell the correct nerves apart soon enough."

Mokuba watched with interest as look of sudden satisfaction passed over his brother's face. _'He is serious about this,'_ Mokuba thought with slightest discomfort. _'He wants it to succeed…'_ After his brother had more or less hired him, he had started to think that there was more to the Limit Breaker than just charity. But it brought a troubling question of why. If it wasn't a plot to make fool of his fiancé and it wasn't a charity project… what was it? Why was his brother actually creating advanced prosthetic legs?

"How are the hardware and the mechanics coming along?" Seto turned his eyes to Mokuba.

"Still working out the kinks, but we should have a rough model of the mechanics around Wednesday," Mokuba promised with a frown. "Engineering these things isn't easy. The hardware is coming along easier than the legs themselves."

Seto nodded, looking at him thoughtfully before turning his eyes away. "Nosaka, come with me. I have something I need to ask you in private."

Mokuba turned to look at his brother sharply. "Hey, hey," he objected trying to get up from the chair only to wince as the sensors hit the top of his head painfully. "You aren't talking Miho alone," he grunted, bringing his hand up to rub his now stinging scalp.

"Shut up, Mokuba," Seto just said walking towards the door. "It'll take just a minute."

"Stay still or you'll damage the sensors," Miho said to Mokuba with a sympathetic smile on her face. "I'll be back in a moment."

Growling quietly, Mokuba watched how the woman he was going to marry followed his brother. Folding his hands with annoyance he kept staring at the door even after it closed after her. _'What does the asshole want now?'_ he grumbled in his mind, swearing to do something drastic if Seto wouldn't behave.

Miho was really gone just for a moment - two minutes at most. She returned to the laboratory alone with slightly confused look about her face. After Mokuba had glared the staff to return to their jobs, he turned worried eyes to her. "What did he want?"

"To know what sort of places we've had our dates in, he didn't say why though," Miho answered with helpless shrug. "I didn't see any harm in it so I listed few of the places you've taken me."

Mokuba stared at her with disbelief before blinking sharply. _'Seto asked about where we had our dates in?'_ he though with confusion as equally puzzled Miho returned to her desk. _'What is that guy thinking now? He can't be thinking about ruining our relationship by ruining the places we've visited… that would be way too stupid for him.'_

x

Seto took the long way from the company building to Yugi's store, enjoying the longer drive and using it to think. Now that everything was ready for the console release he was free to think of other things and one of them was Yugi - and the date he had asked.

_'Dating…'_ he thought with slight discomfort. He and Yugi had been more or less together for about two weeks now. He had considered that to be it - they were already together so why would they need to date? But Yugi seemed to want it, even though he had been quick to push the matter aside there had been that slight look of longing Yugi got when they were talking about things he had never done.

_'I've never in my life had a date,'_ Seto thought, shifting in his seat and leaning back, almost lazily steering with one hand. _'It has never interested me and it has never been an issue. But now it seems to be. Yet…'_ there were things to consider Yugi probably wasn't considering. Fame, for one. _'I can't just go and take a man out to a date. Not unless I want it to be plastered all over the newspapers.'_ After all the time he had been the most wanted bachelor of Domino, him dating anyone would be news. Dating a man… that would be a scandal.

_'Not that the papers in Domino would be able to say much, not when I pay them as much a I do,'_ Seto frowned darkly. _'And if they still will print something negative, I can bring them to ruin, but… times being what they are, it's not just reporters person like me has to worry about.'_ Most people walked around with cameras in their pocket these days - in their mobile phones. If he would take Yugi out, anyone could notice them, take picture of them and send it to some paper outside Domino - one Seto had no control over.

It wasn't that what people thought of him mattered. He couldn't have cared less even if he tried. But the reputation of his company was another thing - and Yugi's reputation… Seto had seen it too many times, how a lover of a celebrity became one as well, whether they wanted to or not. And Yugi had been famous himself at a time. If he would be thrown back to the status of celerity by this sort of thing… it would bring Yugi a lot of hardships. Probably even the hate of the public eye. Seto could protect himself, but Yugi had none of his resources or security. On top of that Yugi was very vulnerable because of his handicap.

_'Those living in the spotlight don't only get the fame and fortune but also the hate,'_ Seto frowned. He had plenty of people who hated him. Heck, not a month went by without some death threat or such being mailed to him anonymously. He could shrug it off without care. Yugi wouldn't be able to do that.

_'So, if I want to take him out I need to do it very carefully,'_ Seto sighed. _'Out of public's eye and in environment I can control…'_ He knew few places like that. Some he could pay off, the others he already had and like that he could control them to certain extend. _'There are few places I could take him safely, but… if he will enjoy them is another thing.'_

Where to take a guy who had fought against gods? Nosaka had said that Mokuba had taken her out to fancy dinner in the beginning and they had seen some plays in theatres - they had also gone to amusement park and circus once. Circus and amusement parks were out of question with Seto and Yugi. Also they had already eaten restaurants and taking Yugi to see a show or a movie somehow didn't seem fitting. Too flat for people like them.

_'There is one place…'_ Seto frowned. _'One place that is naturally quiet, indebted to me and maybe just the right level for someone like Yugi… I could call there right now and ask them to clear the place for me for tomorrow - and they'd do it… but would Yugi really like it…?'_

Brushing his free hand through his hair, the president of the Kaiba Corporation frowned. Yugi seemed to be pleased with everything but when it came to actually intentionally trying to please him, things got difficult. He didn't just want Yugi to enjoy it. After all Yugi had done for him in the last days, he wanted Yugi to enjoy it in way he hadn't enjoyed anything in the past years. The King of Games deserved as much.

After moment of hesitation as he stopped to near empty traffic lights, Seto decided to go with the place. He still found the place fascinating and he had visited it about dozen times after he had funded the new equipment for the place. Yugi would enjoy it too - especially if he enjoyed terrain hologram chips. _'But just taking him there, would that be enough? From what I heard from Nosaka, Mokuba's dates always involved a dinner… It's impossible to have a nice dinner there…'_

Then he remembered one thing Nosaka had also listed, which he had considered unimportant at the time. "One time Mokuba took me out to the park for a picnic…"

Seto thought about it for a moment before snorting and reaching for his phone. _'Picnic in that place. Ridiculous. Yugi will probably find it suitably hilarious,'_ he mused while dialling the phone. As he waited for his call to be picked up, he turned the car towards Yugi's shop.

The so called reservation was really easy to make - apparently the place was empty on weekends anyway. All he would need to do was to pick up the key from the manager and he could have the place for himself all weekend. Soon after giving the manager his thanks, Seto drove to Yugi's parking lot. There he sat in the car for long enough to call his driver.

After making the call, Seto took his briefcase and pushed his phone to his pocket. Then he got up from the car and locked it with the remote. But before heading towards the game shop's door, he stopped for a moment to stare at the building. The shop's side was dark but there were lights on the second floor. Knowing that the window in the middle was the kitchen's, Seto smiled a little. By the looks of the shadow thrown onto the curtains, Yugi was in the kitchen, no doubt reading the day's paper.

Shaking his head Seto walked up to the door. Holding up the keying, he for a moment stopped to stare at the newest addition. His car keys, some keys he needed at his company and few of his mansion's keys were now accompanied by simple key that opened Yugi's store's front door. It was a simple, well worn key for lock design Seto himself didn't quite trust in. Simple. Yet meaningful.

Taking firm hold of the key, Seto slid it into the lock. As the door clicked open, he was for a moment overwhelmed by the amount of power Yugi had given him. The shorter man had always opened the door for him, but this was different. Seto now had a free access to Yugi's home. _'And no one else has this access, other than Yugi that is. No one else has the key to his home...'_ Seto had plenty of keys, but this was the first time he had one that opened the lock to something that he did not own himself.

_'I'm over thinking it,'_ Seto shook his head while stepping into the dark shop. After closing the door behind him and checking that it locked properly, he made his way through the shop and to the backroom. It was rather dark too, but there was enough light for him to navigate through it and to the elevator. _'Ah… maybe I should've used the stairs,'_ he mused while the elevator lifted him to the second floor. _'It's not like I need an elevator in such small house…'_

Making a mental note to use the stairs next time, Seto stepped out of the elevator. He could hear soft music coming from the kitchen, accompanied by the quiet sound of newspaper's page being turned. "Welcome back," Yugi's voice greeted him. "I have sandwiches for you in case you're hungry."

"I am a bit," Seto admitted with a slight smile while toeing his shoes of. After quickly undressing his coat, he took his suitcase to the living room before making his way to the kitchen. Yugi was there, sitting in his wheelchair with cup of tea in his hand and the newspaper spreaded before him.

"Long day?" Yugi asked, turning a bit to look at him.

"Too long for a Friday," Seto said while sitting down. The sandwiches were on a plate on the counter, but from the seat he could reach them easily. "I was thinking about picking a bottle of brandy but the shop closed before I got off and I had no lunch break whatsoever."

Yugi smiled, turning his attention to the paper. "There are other ways of relaxing than just alcohol," he said calmly, taking a sip of his tea. Even though it was some of a habit for them to drink on Friday, he didn't seem annoyed at all. "There's always tomorrow if you want to have a glass."

"Ah… no," Seto disagreed. "I already have a schedule for tomorrow."

Yugi glanced at him, his smile faltering slightly before he hid it behind the tea cup. "Oh?" asked with almost nonchalant voice.

Seto gave the smaller man a thoughtful look, wondering what reaction he was trying to hide with the nonchalant behaviour. Then he sighed. _'No use distracting myself now, I've already arraigned things so backing down now would be stupid,'_ he thought. "I'm taking you out tomorrow," he said, turning his attention to the sandwich and taking a bite just so that he wouldn't have to elaborate.

There was a surprise in Yugi's eyes as he turned to look at the taller man. "You are?" he asked again, startled delight in his tone. The smile of almost vulnerable happiness that came to his lips was almost painful to look at - Yugi was so happy with so little that it was just wrong.

"Yes, I am," Seto answered awkwardly, staring at the sandwich before glancing at the other with a frown. "Don't have too high expectations, though. I've never done this before."

"I'm sure it will be fine," Yugi answered with a gentle smile, reaching out to take Seto's free hand to his. While squeezing the other man's hand - so small in comparison to his own - Seto hoped that he wouldn't disappoint Yugi with the plans he had made. He was already painfully aware that the place he would take Yugi wasn't exactly romantic - not that he knew anything about romance.

"How was your day otherwise?" Yugi asked. "Did you get to check out how that secret project of yours is doing?"

Seto glanced up. "Yeah, I did," he said remembering the sight of his little brother sitting in the crude prototype of the CNS-receiver. He smiled a little. "The project is coming along slowly. Nosaka is… surprisingly determined worker. And by the looks of it, she's good at bossing Mokuba around."

"So, you're not… ah, suspicious about her anymore?" Yugi asked, now rubbing his thump across Seto's knuckles gently.

Seto thought about it. In the last days, he had found that Nosaka was hard and dedicated worker. She and Mokuba had selected the team and already they had the prototype of the sensors ready and working. She was no soft chief to the team either - and despite Mokuba's presence there, it was really Nosaka who was holding the power in the laboratory. And she did it well. On top of that, she obviously liked the project - wanted to complete it about as much as Seto did. She had different reasons, but same goal.

_'In many things,'_ Seto mused. "I guess I'm… getting adjusted to her," he then answered. "She is a good worker and she has a good brain on her." Nosaka had also won some points by her daily reports - each evening she sent a written report of what she and her workers had accomplished the day, often adding sketches and holograms to it so that Seto could have tangible proof. "She's more efficient than I thought."

Yugi nodded, slightly pleased smile on his lips. "And Mokuba?"

"He's suspicious with me and I can't quite… understand him anymore," Seto sighed, frowning at the memory of the few encounters he had had with his brother. He could deal with Nosaka since she was keeping their communication rather professional, but Mokuba always added personal things which were harder to face.

"I'm sure things will work out," the shopkeeper said, bringing Seto's hand up and pressing a gentle kiss to his knuckles. "These sort of things take sometimes time, I suppose. You have to patient with him and with yourself."

"In case you haven't noticed, patience isn't one of my strengths," Seto muttered. "But I guess I'll just have to try."

Yugi smiled to him while turning his attention to the paper. "Soo…" he said slowly. "Where exactly are you taking me tomorrow?"

Seto glanced at him and snorted. "To a secret place," he said with a crooked smirk. _'No one knows that I fund the place so it is a secret.'_

"How mysterious of you," Yugi chuckled, kissing his knuckles again. "I'll be looking forward to when you'll be unveiling the secret then."

"It's not much of a one," Seto muttered, squeezing his hand. _'But I hope you'll enjoy it anyway.'_

x

This hasn't been checked for mistakes so there might be typos and such. Too tired to care right now. Thanks for the reviews and all...


	12. XII chapter

**XII chapter**

While slowly waking up, Seto brushed his hand over his eyes and then searched for the alarm clock with his eyes. He had woken on his own, which very rarely happened, and now he wanted to know what the time was, to know how much longer he could still sleep or should he get up already. The alarm clock sat on the bedside table in the other side of the bed - Yugi's side - and it showed that the clock was already nine.

_'What? I should've been up hours ago!'_ Seto frowned, rising to lean onto his elbow. _'Why didn't Yugi wake me up…?'_ The question trailed away as his eyes came to rest on the small body almost against his own. Yugi was still fast asleep, almost hidden underneath the duvets and facing away from Seto. The taller man stared at the sleeping shopkeeper for a moment before leaning his cheek against his palm. _'I see…'_

In the time he had spent in Yugi's house, he had never gotten awake early enough to see Yugi still sleeping. Sometimes Yugi fell asleep earlier than he did and he had the chance to watch the sleeping man before falling asleep himself, but Yugi always woke up before he did. But not today apparently. By the looks of it, Yugi could've contently spent the entire day sleeping.

_'Ah, yes, Saturday,'_ Seto mused, remembering the phone call from while ago. Smile tugged on the corner of his lips. _'You're supposed to sleep in on Saturday.'_

Leaning a bit forward, Seto craned his neck a bit to see Yugi's face. It was scrunched in that peculiar frown Yugi always had when he was asleep. Reaching one hand to brush the golden bangs from the other's face, Seto allowed himself to smile. The frown on Yugi's face made it seem like he was concentrating onto something very seriously in his sleep.

_'Only time I saw a peaceful look on his face when he was sleeping - or almost sleeping - was when he was playing the Mystical Forest number seven,'_ Seto thought, gently brushing the smaller man's bangs behind his ear. _'Yugi looks peaceful and kind most of the time, it's kind of funny to see that he frowns in his sleep. Kind of cute too.'_

Noticing that the bang just in the middle was shorter than the others, Seto took it to his fingers and rolled it between them. Even the bleached bangs were coarse to touch, making Seto wonder if Yugi ever used any sort of conditioner. Seto did, it was easiest way of keeping his hair in order. If Yugi didn't, it explained a lot. Like the fact that even while he was sleeping, his hair still mostly stuck up.

Giving into a silly temptation, Seto leaned down and pressed his nose against Yugi's spiky hair. _'Lemon? He uses lemon scented shampoo? And here I was expecting milk and honey - and possibly strawberries,'_ the taller man snorted. _'It fits him strangely well, though…'_

"Seto, what're you doing?" Yugi's sleepy voice interrupted his amused thoughts

"Nothing," the taller man answered, quickly pulling back as if nothing had happened. "You're sleeping late," he then said to distract the other from what he had been more or less caught doing.

"Saturday," Yugi murmured as if it explained everything. Then he rolled to his back and almost right into Seto's chest. Brushing his hand through his hair, Yugi turned his half-lidded eyes onto the other man. "You were playing with my hair."

"No I wasn't," Seto answered with a slight frown, only to be given an amused, knowing smile in return. "I wasn't," he repeated sternly.

"Yes you were," Yugi said with a sleepy chuckle, rolling to his other side so that he was facing the taller man. Then much to Seto's surprise, he shifted so that he was pressing against the other man. "It's alright, you can play with my hair as much as you like. It feels good."

Seto blinked. Then, almost by itself, his hand lifted to Yugi's hair while the shorter man pressed his cheek against Seto's chest. Despite being coarse, Yugi's hair wasn't tangled at all as Seto dug his fingers into it. Yugi hummed happily at the action, throwing one arm around Seto's waist. As he fell still and quiet, the taller man smirked. "Hah, finally a morning where you're not being annoyingly cheerful and efficient," Seto murmured, bending his neck so that he could smell the other's hair again. _'Hmm… it's not a bad scent, lemon…'_

"Saturdays are for lazing off," Yugi mumbled in answer. Then he yawned, his body tensing briefly and his lips brushing against Seto's skin as he did. After it he seemed to relax completely. "I'm going to fall asleep again. That feels really nice…"

Seto allowed a small smile while gently stroking his fingers through the thick hair. _'I can't even remember when was the last time I slept this late. I'm usually awake by seven - eight the latest. But…'_ he breathed in Yugi's scent again. _'This isn't a bad sort of morning. Not at all.'_

"Do I smell good?" Yugi asked with languid amusement.

"Hmm…" Seto answered with noncommittal hum, continuing slowly to brush his fingers over Yugi's scalp. He knew he should've gotten up. There were things to do and not only those related to his work. He needed to call to the mansion - to his cook specifically - to get everything ready for the date. But right then he didn't mind spending some minutes just doing nothing really productive. "When do you want to go out?" he asked.

"I get to choose?"

"I need to get something before we can go, so you need to give me an hour or so, but yes," Seto answered, his fingers sliding down from the other man's hair to his neck.

Yugi shuddered against him, tightening his hold on Seto's waist as the taller man stroked his fingers up and down the other's neck. "Around noon then?" the shopkeeper asked with a soft, contented hum.

"Around noon it is," Seto answered with a smile, brushing his thumb over Yugi's spine before bringing his fingers up to the other's hair again. He hadn't really got the chance to touch Yugi like this - or if he had gotten it, he hadn't used it. He was firm believer in personal space and had thought that such touching might feel uncomfortable… Yet Yugi was quite often touching him. And now that Seto had taken chance, it was surprisingly enjoyable. And the feel of Yugi against his chest wasn't as… intruding as he had thought.

"Falling asleep now…" Yugi mumbled. Seto snorted but said nothing. He just continued to stroke his fingers through the other man's thick hair, somehow revelling in the freedom to do so.

x

Yugi was happy. So utterly and completely happy that it made him feel slightly dizzy. He could remember this sort of feeling from back when he had been young, his body occupied by another soul and the space around him occupied by his friends… but it had been so long ago. He had been alone and more or less miserable for so many years. Now that the feeling had returned, it made him feel out of sorts.

Seto was making him feel happy. What a strange thought. It was something he would've never thought to be possible back when he had been young. Kaiba Seto had been source of confusion and slight stress, but happiness? Only for his brother. But now… things were different.

As he tried to concentrate onto pulling his prosthetics on, Yugi still felt the warm sensation in his scalp and neck. Seto had spend almost half an hour just touching and caressing him, something Yugi hadn't believed he'd want to do. Usually it was other way around, Yugi being the one doing the touching and starting most of their kisses. But not this time - Seto had been playing with his hair even before he had regained coherency! On top of that they had jut laid there for so long, doing really nothing but enjoying the closeness…

Pulling the left leg's prosthetic over the nylon covered stump, Yugi shifted the prosthetic a bit to check that it fit well. Then he picked the sock for the right leg, pulling it quickly over the stump. Leaning back a bit, he reached for the right leg's prosthetic before picking the leather pants he had selected for the day. Steadying the prosthetic between his legs, he manoeuvred the leather pants' right leg half way onto the prosthetic. After that he pulled the prosthetic on before slipping the left prosthetic into the pants as well and finally pulling the pants on entirely.

_'Strange. It's so simple and so complicated in the same time, to lay in someone's arms in the morning,'_ Yugi mused while reaching for his cane and slowly hoisting himself up. _'Complicated because… well, I've never really done something like that before Seto. And I doubt Seto has ever let anyone - other than Mokuba maybe - that close. One would think that we'd be awkward with thing like that, sometimes Seto really is, but… this time he wasn't. And it was so nice…'_

Smiling to himself, he made his way to the kitchen. Seto was currently out, picking up something that was apparently necessary for the date. The thought of the taller man putting so much effort into their date made Yugi's insides squirm with another burst of happiness. _'I thought he didn't care about things like that. Dates… what are they to a man like him? But here we are,'_ Yugi chuckled softly. _'I can't wait to see what he has planned…'_

While waiting for the other man to return, Yugi made himself a cup of tea and turned the radio on. Even though the action was normal and usual for him it felt somehow different now that he was waiting something. After living so long with nothing to really look forward to, he cherished the anticipation.

Just half hour before noon Seto drove to the parking lot. Looking down to him from the kitchen window, Yugi followed him with his eyes as he walked to the door. The absence of doorbell's ringing made him smile as he turned his attention to the corridor between the kitchen and the elevator. He expected it to start soon enough, but it didn't. Instead Seto did something Yugi himself hadn't dared to for four years. He used the stairs.

While Yugi tried to figure out what he felt about Seto using the stairs - jealousy or gratitude since the elevator did use lot of electricity - Seto quickly took his shoes off. "My driver well be here in half an hour," the man said while walking to the kitchen. "Will we be ready to go by then?"

"Depends on what sort of clothing I'm supposed to wear," Yugi answered with a shake of his head. "If I need to dress more formally then I imagine I need to change my pants. Why didn't you use the elevator?"

"What ever you want to wear is fine - formal wear is in no way necessary. And it seemed a bit stupid to use the elevator when I can just as well take the stairs," Seto answered, taking seat at the table. "I imagine that thing must leave quite impact on your electric bill."

"Yeah, it does," Yugi smiled and then realised what Seto had said. "Your driver? You're not going to drive me there yourself."

"Well, I could drive you but then we'd need to walk back," the taller man raised his eyebrows. "And it would be a pretty long way to walk."

"Oh," the shopkeeper said. _'He plans to drink,'_ he mused. "Alright then. Are you going to tell me where we are going now? Or will it be a surprise until the very end?"

Seto thought about it for a moment before shaking his head. "I'd rather not say just yet, but I'll tell that it's not a restaurant and that I had my cook pack us a lunch, sort of speak. My driver will pick it up from the mansion before coming to pick us up."

Yugi lifted his eyebrows. _'Well, that sounds… un-Kaiba-like,'_ he mused. He then decided not to ask more. He wasn't quite sure what to think of the idea of a picnic with Seto. He was mildly curious about what Seto had picked up for the date, but he figured that he'd found out what it was about sooner or later. "By the way, have you told Mokuba that you're staying here? I mean… he's still staying at the mansion, right?"

The taller man sighed and shook his head. "I haven't really seen any reason to tell him. Whether he has noticed my absence at the mansion or not, it hasn't seemed to bother him much," he snorted softly. "It seems like he's bothered by my very existence these days."

Yugi frowned. _'So, Mokuba doesn't know about our relationship either...' _it didn't bother him as much as the question of how Mokuba would react once he would find out did. "I'm sure it's not that," he murmured, glancing at him worriedly. Seto was good at not showing it, but the rift with his brother was really hurting him and so was Mokuba's apparent hostility. And his own hostility which he was unable to let go. "Have you ever fought this seriously before?"

"No, I… no," Seto stared at the table's surface with a frown.

"So you're both treading in unknown territory," Yugi mused. "Since you've never fought before, you don't know how to make up either. You need to give it time."

"So you keep saying," the taller man muttered with a heavy sigh. "And that is what I'm doing. Trying to anyway."

Yugi smiled. "I'm sure thing will work out eventually," he said. Seto shrugged neutrally but the frown in his face was troubled rather than negative.

After some time Seto's driver came. While they got up to get their coats and shoes, Yugi wondered how many cars Seto had. Probably more than two. In the end he decided not to ask since it wasn't all that important anyway. And he would've probably gotten nightmares about the money Seto had no doubt spent in them.

"Are you sure that this getup is suitable?" Yugi asked, looking down to his leather pants and sleeveless black shirt.

"Well you might want to get another shirt but other than that what ever you wear is fine," Seto promised. "There won't be other people in the place I'm taking you."

"Alright then," the shopkeeper nodded, getting a button up shirt from his closet. After pulling it on, he took a black leather jacket from the rack before sitting down to pull his socks and shoes on. Seto, despite the lack of tie, was still dressed into a rather fancy suit, which made Yugi slightly self conscious about his own clothing. "Do you wear anything else but suits?" he asked while easing the socks onto the rubber feet of the prosthetics.

"Not really," the taller man admitted while pulling his shoes on. "You don't like my clothing?"

"No, they just make me wary of my own," Yugi murmured with a chuckle. After pulling his boot on, he hoisted himself up with the help of the cane. "I feel… uh, just look at me!" he motioned at his own clothing.

Seto gave him a dry look, his lips curling into crooked smirk. "Leather suits you," he simply said. "I can't really imagine you of all people in business suit. It wouldn't fit at all."

"I know, but…" Yugi sighed, giving the other man a weary look. "But still. You look all nice and proper and I look like this. I look like a delinquent next to you."

The taller man snorted. "At least we won't be one of those couples who wear matching clothing," he said, making Yugi shudder slightly. "It doesn't matter how you look because seriously, I'm not taking your attire out. I'm taking you. Now stop whining. My driver is waiting for us."

Yugi glanced at him and allowed a little smile. "Alright, let's go then."

If the driver thought that the occasion was strange in some way, he didn't show it. He merely held the door open for Seto and Yugi as they sat down to the back of the car and then went to claim the driver's seat. He also apparently knew where to take them since he didn't wait for instructions before driving out of the shop's parking lot.

"This secret place is out of town then?" Yugi asked once he realised that the car was driving them away from the centre of Domino.

"It's few kilometres away from the outskirts of Domino," Seto nodded. "Very few even know about the place's existence these days."

Yugi gave him a surprised look, now really getting interested - and worried - about where Seto was taking him. He had been expecting restaurant, maybe movie or show or something, but it seemed that Seto's thoughts had gone a completely different direction. One completely incomprehensible for Yugi. _'Well, he's as far as I know completely inexperienced with dating, so… I guess I shouldn't have expected him to go about it the same way most people do.'_

It took some ten, fifteen minutes for them to get there, and the route there took through street Yugi had never seen before. The street was asphalt but it was in bad condition, clearly many decades old. The growth of the forests around the street also told that it wasn't all that popular route. And soon enough Yugi realised that it only lead to one place - to a great white building of dome-like built.

_'Observatory? Seto took me to a space observatory?'_ Yugi thought with mild shock, turning confused eyes to the other man. _'Is this really his idea of proper place for a date?'_

"Wait for it," Seto simply said, though there was slight tenseness about him.

Soon the car stopped to the front of the building. After standing up from the car, Yugi raked his eyes over the building. It was obviously old; the paint had flaked here and there. To Yugi it seemed like it hadn't been properly taken care of in a long while.

"Domino Space Observatory. It hasn't been in function for about twenty years now. Something happened to their telescope and they couldn't get funding to fix it at the time," Seto said, walking to his side with a basket in his hand. Behind them the driver returned to the car and then started to drive away. After giving the departing car a thoughtful look the taller man looked down to the shop keeper. "It works as something else these days."

"As what?" Yugi asked with confusion, still a bit puzzled about why exactly had Seto brought him here. And for a date of all things.

"I'll show you," the taller man smirked crookedly and stepped forward. "Come on."

As Yugi followed, he saw that Seto was pulling out keys from his pocket. With them he easily opened the front door of the observatory, making Yugi wonder how he had such access to the place. After a moment he worded the curiosity.

"The current manager of the place owes a great deal to me. He wasn't adverse at all when I asked to have the observatory for myself for a day," the taller man said while holding the door open for Yugi. "Though the observatory is empty on weekends anyway. It was the keys to this place I picked up earlier."

"Oh, I see," Yugi frowned, looking around in the dark corridor. The place fell into almost complete darkness when Seto allowed the door to close, but soon after the taller man found the light switch. The corridor was rather plank.

"This way," Seto said, motioning the shorter man to follow him. Yugi followed, still confused about what made this place special - other than it's potential as haunted research facility or something like that. They walked pass locked rooms and then came to staircase. Seto, noticing Yugi's hesitation at the sight of them, stepped beside him and took one of his arms.

"Thanks," Yugi murmured and carefully begun to walk up one stair at a time. His left leg was fine with stairs with it he could've jumped the stairs up three at a time but the right one… wasn't as agile. Thankfully there was only one floor's worth of the stairs. In the second floor they came to a corridor where there was only one door. Seto used another key to open it and then led Yugi into dark room. When the rather dim lights were turned on, Yugi stopped to stare at the enormous round hall that had a very high dome-like ceiling. The entire room was empty except for rostrum-like table near the door.

"This is where the telescope was," Seto said, motioning at the roof where the dome had opened. "But it was sold away long ago and the room was cleared of all machinery about five years ago."

Yugi blinked with confusion, turning his eyes to the taller man. "And now it's… what?"

"The first hologram theatre I've created," the taller man smirked, stepping forward and to the rostrum. Stepping beside him, Yugi found that the rostrum was actually a computer with a large touch screen taking the place of the table. With a press of a button, Seto brought the computer online; opening what looked like enormous image gallery colourful, strange images.

Yugi almost fell over when Seto pressed one of them. With a flicker, the room around the vanished and suddenly it seemed like they were standing on nothing at all. Somewhere right of them there was the moon except bigger than Yugi had ever seen. And underneath them there was the earth, glowing white and blue like some sort of enormous jewel.

"Oh wow," Yugi whispered stepping forward and staring at the earth with fascination. It was strange to stand on seemingly nothing even though he could clearly feel the floor under him, but that was the last thing in his mind. "How… when… why…?" Yugi trailed away, turning to look at the other man who had a slightly pleased smirk on his face. "You made this place?"

"I started funding this place five years ago," the taller man nodded. "At first I thought of getting this place a new telescope and things they needed, but then I get a better idea - and with all the telescopes they have out in space these days, building a new one here on earth is pretty foolish - they will never give as clear images as space telescopes gave anyway. So instead I gave this place my hologram technology."

"And they created holograms of things in space," Yugi murmured, turning his attention to earth again only to have the image shift. The moon came closer, so close that Yugi started seeing shapes and craters in it surface he had never seen before. It was so close that Yugi could literally walk around it to look at its dark side.

"Yes, though it took them better part of four years to make the holograms as good as they wanted them to be - they're very… meticulous people, the people working in this place" Seto nodded. "Some organizations in the world of astronomy know about this place of course, but this hologram project is still rather secret. We're planning on making it all public in year or two, though," he motioned at the room. "This is still just a prototype. In two years I'll start co-working with JAXA, NASA, ESA and half dozen other space agencies to make larger versions of this space theatre thorough the world."

Yugi turned to the taller man. "I thought you wanted to keep holograms solely in gaming technology," he said with surprise. "And now you're giving it away?"

"It's not that I want to keep the holograms just in gaming technology. I know that holograms will and should spread and one day we might stop using other sort of image technology - I'm not stupid. I just don't want it to become in any way part of military technology," Seto mused with annoyed sigh. "That has been the hardest part of this secret project of mine. With NASA especially."

Yugi nodded thoughtfully, turning his eyes to the moon. It was incredible. It had for years and years seemed that holograms were solely a game related thing, but Seto's visions apparently reached further than that. Advancing science like this… "You are amazing."

"Oh?" Seto asked, pressing some other image in the rostrum's screen. The hologram of moon and earth started to shift and suddenly it was Mars they were looking at. Yet the image didn't stop there and not much after they passed through the asteroid belt before Jupiter started approaching them.

"Creating something like this…" Yugi murmured, staring at the gas giant which slowed down as if to just show itself to Yugi. Out of curiosity Yugi pressed his hand against Great Red Spot. "It's incredible."

"I gave them the technology but these holograms are all their creations," Seto answered. He pressed another button and made the Jupiter pass them. Saturn soon replaced it and before Yugi knew it, he was standing on the rings of Saturn. "These are of course not the all holograms they have. The ones about our solar system are actually the simplest ones, ones they managed to make very quickly. It's holograms like these…" Seto pressed another image. "…that took time to make."

With wide eyes Yugi stared at the beautiful disk of sparkle like lights that had suddenly appeared right upon him. It was like a pinwheel with a fiery centre and fog like arms. It was definitely one of the most beautiful holograms he had ever seen.

"The Milky Way," Seto named the beautiful wheel before turning to the computer. He seemed to write something to the computer screen with his fingers before he stepped away from it and to Yugi. While he did, the galaxy vanished and even more incredible hologram appeared.

Staring at the butterfly like hologram that looked like it was made of colourful smoke or dust, Yugi swallowed. "Here I thought you'd take me to a restaurant or maybe to see a show or something," he murmured, turning to look at the other man. "Instead you took me out to see the universe!"

"Do you like it?" Seto asked seriously.

"It's incredible," Yugi whispered, watching how the butterfly like formation faded away and was replaced by a hologram of dark clouds surrounded by mass of light and sparkles. Turning his eyes back to the taller man, Yugi smiled. "These are the most beautiful things I've ever seen. Thank you for bringing me here."

Seto looked like he was about to say something but instead he just smiled. "You're welcome," he said before taking Yugi's hand. "Let's sit down. I set the computer on slideshow function, so it will be changing the images on its own. All we need to do is sit back and watch."

"Alright. You will need to help me stand up again though," Yugi said. Carefully they sat down to the floor. Then Seto placed the basket before them, revealing a bottle of champagne, two glasses and what looked like packed food. "You went all out, didn't you?" Yugi mused as Seto easily opened the bottle of no doubt expensive champagne.

"Well, my cook did. He was the one who got this ready," Seto answered while pouring the champagne for them. "I thought about going with brandy but I figured that it wouldn't' be fitting for something like this."

"Maybe not," Yugi chuckled, placing his cane aside and shifting into as comfortable position as he could. "I've never actually drank champagne," he murmured while taking his glass. It smelled sweet. "This is exciting. Shall we make a toast?"

"To what?" Seto asked, taking his own glass.

"I don't know," Yugi thought about it for a while quickly scrapping most of the possible ideas or a toast. In the end he ended up looking at the latest hologram which was slowly shifting. It was like shining multicoloured smoke scattered in space "How about to that thing? What is it anyway?"

"A supernova," Seto answered with amusement. "Exploding star."

Yugi grinned. "I'll drink to that," he said and with a chuckle they gently brought their glasses together. Almost as if hearing the sound of the soft ringing of the glasses, the hologram changed into another spectacular sight. While raising his glass to take a sip, Yugi was hundred percent certain that no one had ever been on a date such as this.

x

"You're not thinking of making hologram chips of these things?" Yugi asked after a moment of silence, looking up as image of shining supernova loomed upon them. "And selling them as some sort of new space related chip collection? Lot of people would buy it, I'd imagine."

"No, these are too big for current chips. It would need about four chips just to store one of holograms like these," Seto shook his head. "Sure, they could be made smaller, but… they wouldn't be as good then. The details would be blurred."

"I imagine so," Yugi mused, his eyes trailing over the hologram with slight awe.

"Also, right now I want to keep this project within astronomy," the taller man snorted, looking down to his champagne. He didn't like the drink; it was much too sweet for his tastes. "I didn't start it for entertainment, no matter what everyone thinks. Games and profit isn't all I think about." He had ventures in astronomy and now one even in medicine. Not that Yugi knew that yet.

Yugi smiled at him. "Yeah," he murmured turning his eyes back to the holograms as they took them from a supernova to a nebula. "How many holograms have they made?"

"Few hundred," Seto shrugged. "Once they figured out the best way to do it, they've steadily been making more - and they're getting better at quickening rate. For people who have only been working with holograms for so many years, they are really quite skilled. I might even say that they make the best holograms there is. But then again, they have different motivations than my workers do."

Yugi nodded. "I can imagine that," he answered, taking another sip of his drink. "This is good, by the way."

Seto rolled his eyes. "I figured you'd like it," he said. It had been his cook who had selected the bottle, but Seto was glad he had asked it to be champagne. "There's food in the basket too, in case you want to eat."

"We skipped lunch so yes, I might want to look at it," Yugi chuckled, looking at the basket curiously.

Seto pulled the basked closer. There were carefully wrapped sandwiches, fruits, see though containers with salad in them and what looked like lunchboxes. Seto had asked his cook to keep it simple - the man had tendency of going overboard with things otherwise. "Pick something," he said to the other man.

"Alright, I'll start with… this," Yugi said, taking one of the sandwiches. Seto did the same as they started to polish off their picnic underneath the light of the universe.

After eating as much as they wanted, they spend a long while just sitting there and watching how one bright scene changed into another one. Seto had seen most of the holograms before, though usually he watched them standing by the computer. Sitting on the floor and watching them with Yugi, it made the holograms seem different. Brighter and more beautiful than they had seemed before. And the look of unguarded awe and wonder in Yugi's face just seemed to shine along with the holograms.

"You've made me really happy today, you know," Yugi murmured then, draining the last sip of his champagne before setting the glass to the floor. "You know, in that nauseating way that makes everything seem more colourful and makes your feet feel lighter," he chuckled, turning his eyes to Seto. "Thank you."

"You're thanking me for making you feel nauseous?" Seto asked with crooked smirk, placing his own glass down as well - it still had champagne in it but he had no intention of drinking it.

"It's good sort of nausea," Yugi chuckled, reaching for the cane. Seto knew what was coming but he didn't bother avoiding it as Yugi hooked the cane's handle behind his neck and dragged him closer. "Let me show you how nauseous you've made me," Yugi grinned while Seto was forced to shift closer.

"Why do I have to experience your nausea?" Seto asked, trying to smother the amused smile that was trying to appear to his lips.

"It's your own fault, you're the one who made me happy," Yugi grinned, pulling him closer until their lips were almost touching. "Now suffer my happiness…"

"Isn't it supposed to be wrath?" Seto trailed away as Yugi gently brushed their lips together.

"My happiness easily overcomes all the wrath in the world," Yugi murmured, throwing an arm around Seto's neck. The cane was placed aside as Yugi finally pulled him closer and into a kiss.

It was a new sort of kissing, slow and languid and in a way memorising. The touch of Yugi's lips was soft and teasing and even without meaning to Seto answered to it in kind. Soon Yugi's hand came to his cheek and gently directed his head to better position, making the kiss a bit deeper. Seto could taste the champagne on Yugi's lips and suddenly the sweetness didn't bother him at all.

When Yugi's tongue brushed against his lips, Seto forgot most he had learned about breathing for split of a moment. Without knowing what else to do, he opened his lips to the curious tongue, shivering lightly as it tasted the inner side of his upper lip. When it carefully slipped past his teeth, Seto lost all ability to breathe. By the time Yugi pulled back he was about as out of breath as he had been after their very first kisses.

The shorter man chuckled strangely, staring at him with shining eyes. "Do you have any idea how gorgeous you look when you're out of breath?" he asked, making Seto freeze. If Yugi noticed it, he paid no attention to it as he brushed his fingers over Seto's cheek. "Your eyes shine and your face gets colour it usually doesn't have… beautiful." Seto frowned a little at the last word, making the shorter man chuckle. "Alright, handsome then," Yugi corrected, shifting closer. "Let's try this sort of kissing again…"

Seto's eyes fell shut immediately as Yugi's lips collided with his own. The second kiss was no less sweet than the last one, but it was a bit deeper. It left Seto breathing harder than before after Yugi had pulled back. "I'm not sure if this is a good place for this, Yugi," he panted, leaning his forehead against the smaller man's.

"What better place for love than under the light of the universe?" Yugi whispered with a smile. When Seto merely shook his head, Yugi grinned and pulled him into another kiss.

x

Hee, see my inner space geek shining through the yaoi-fangirl. Sorry for taking so long, I've been preoccupied by other stories. And sorry for the arupt ending of the chapter, there was more but sadly... it wouldn't fit the ratings of fanfictionnet. And since I withdrew from adultfanfiction, I can't even point you to the direction of the uncut version. Oh well, you will have to do with this. I'll just say that they didn't go all the way yet and you just let your imagination fill in the rest.

Edit: the uncut version can be found from my Yahoo group, follow the "homepage" link on my profile and you'll be taken there.


	13. XIII chapter

**XIII chapter**

Mokuba's eyes took the laboratory in quickly, sharply skipping over the instruments and computers before passing over the hologram designer and settling on the sensory chair. Everything seemed to be the way they had left it on Friday. The chair was just as crude and horrible looking as back then, not even the cords had been moved. Even the chair by the computers that were connected to the chair seemed to be in the same position Miho had left it.

"Well, Mokuba?" his fiancé said while walking past him. Resting her hands on her hips, she glanced at the long haired man. "To me it looks like he hasn't been here."

"Then he was probably somewhere elsewhere in the building - holed up in his office or something," Mokuba muttered, striding into the laboratory and clicking the computers on while passing them. They were first in the laboratory, but he knew that the other members of their team would be arriving soon enough. _'Weird, though. Considering how serious he seems to be with this project, I would've thought this would be where he spent the weekend…'_

"Maybe he was staying over at a friend of his, or something," Miho said with a sigh while stepping to the computers monitoring the chair, and turning them on. "Just because your brother didn't come to the mansion for the weekend doesn't mean that he spent the weekend working."

"You don't know my brother like I do. He's always working - and he doesn't have any friends," Mokuba growled, folding his hands and glaring at the sensory chair. There had been no sight of his brother at the mansion the entire length of time he and Miho had been staying there. The longer his brother's absence lasted, the more it pissed him off. _'He promised me that he wouldn't set foot on the company building during weekends unless it was an emergency,'_ Mokuba thought with a growl. _'Do his promises really only last for as long as I'm there to make sure he keeps them?'_

"Then maybe he was staying in hotel or something," the woman said while sitting down before the computer. She turned her way too sharp eyes on the young man. "It really bothers you, doesn't it?" she then asked.

Mokuba frowned before sighing. "Of course it does. He's my brother. And not only is that asshole overworking himself to death again but… does he really dislike me so much that he won't even stay in the mansion if I'm there?" he shook his head. "It's not like him to hide away like this. It's…"

"Worrisome," Miho raised her eyebrows at him. "You two have been fighting for a long while, Mokuba. Every time he steps into the room, you turn hostile just out of instinct. It's probably the same for him. But you can't deny that he's trying, in his own way."

The long haired man turned to stare at the woman with confusion. "He's bossing us around to make damn high-tech prosthetics for him, how is that trying?" he asked with disbelief.

"He could've had me thrown out the moment I appeared to his office. He could've not called me when I left my card to him. Instead he hired me to do this. And when you argued against him, he did the same with you. He's even paying us insane amount of money for doing this," Miho shook her head. "Sure, it's obvious he has some sort of motives behind this, some still unknown reason as to why he wants us to build these things… But the fact remains, he doesn't need us specifically. We're replaceable in this project. If he would really dislike us so much, he could've kicked us out by now. And you know it better than I do."

Mokuba frowned, looking away. Yes, he did know that better than Miho did. Seto had little patience for people he disliked. And he really could've kicked them out long ago - he could've laughed at their faces when Mokuba had decided that they would stay at the mansion. But Seto hadn't. He was cold and seemingly uncaring but still… _'Seto has never been good with these sort of things. I know that better than anyone does - he doesn't do these sort of things. If he fights with people, that is it. He doesn't make up with them later on. So…'_

He shook his head. Kaiba Seto not knowing how to do something was both ridiculous and somehow mortifying. "If he is trying to…" Mokuba frowned, turning to look at his fiancé before scowling. "He still set an ultimatum on our relationship!"

"No, he set the ultimatum on me," Miho shook her head with a small smile. "His exact words were: 'If you will help me make this possible then I will accept that you are worthy enough to become my brother's wife'. I did tell you that, didn't I?" she turned her eyes to the computer screen. "He is being way too over protective of you and he's very bad at expressing it. But in the end it still means only one thing. He's worried about you."

Mokuba glared at the sensor chair as if it had done something wrong.

"When you had the fight, he didn't know me. He knew only two things about me: I'm older than you, and you were helping me pay off the debts," Miho shook his head. "When you take that into consideration, his reaction was logical. And when you stood up in my defence, his reaction naturally got worse."

Mokuba opened his mouth to argue, but didn't find a suitable argument. When the doors opened and the other members of their team stepped in, he merely sighed. "I hate it when you're being smarter than me," he sighed. Miho threw a small victorious smile at him, making him smile in return.

"Aright then," Mokuba then muttered, giving their team a thoughtful look. "Let's get to work. Who wants to sit on the chair today?" When the workers gave him startled horrified looks before quickly stepping back, he sighed heavily. "Fine, I'll sit on it again," he muttered.

"Your heroic contribution to science shall be remembered, darling," Miho said to him sweetly as he stepped towards the chair.

"I'll definitely remember it," Mokuba muttered and decided to spend some time redesigning the chair to look less like a death trap. _'I wonder if Seto will start working on the Limit Breaker now that the third Disk Console has been released…?'_

x

The previous week's constant stress had paid off. The DC3 release had gone without a hitch - and thankfully Seto hadn't had to be there to see it either. He had just watched it from the television as his marketing chief had given a speech. Then he had witnessed how some news channel had covered the story of how hundreds of game stores opened their doors that morning to thousands of fans, who had all been eagerly waiting for the new console. The sight of so many people who had been lining up for hours and hours to be some of the first to get his console had been quite satisfying.

_'The marketing and advertising department did their job well with this one,'_ Seto mused with satisfaction while waiting for the company building's elevator to reach the first floor. _'Not that it was all that necessary. The fans have been waiting for the console since last year, after all, there hasn't been a person in the gaming world who hasn't known about the release months before we started advertising it…'_

Now that the console had been released, Seto would have some free time on his hands. He considered rejoining the Limit Breaker project, but he wasn't sure if he was welcome in the laboratory anymore. And he wasn't all that certain if he would be able to work along with Mokuba. Every time he stepped into the laboratory, his little brother's hostility could be felt from the very air… it would be a very difficult situation to work in.

_'But I want to work in the project. It's my project,'_ Seto thought with a frown as the elevator stopped. Once the doors had opened he stepped out. _'Mokuba is good and he has decent staff working with him, but still… it's not his project. And he and Nosaka don't even know whom it's for…'_ they would never be able to design it right not knowing. Right now Mokuba probably thought that Limit Breaker was just a prototype for what would one day lead to more advanced prosthetics.

As the workers in the hall greeted him and bid him good night, Seto thought about Yugi. He had to stifle a smile at the memory of their more than pleasant weekend. _'I'll stop by the lab tomorrow morning,'_ he then decided. _'Depending on how far along they've gotten with the project, I will start working on it as well. Nosaka and Mokuba probably work well designing the sensors, so I can concentrate onto the mechanics of the legs…'_

There was lot to do in the project. Not only was there a whole new technology to be created, but it would have to be small and light enough to actually work. What use was there of mechanics like this if they couldn't be lifted without machinery and if they needed a goddamn chair to be operated? _'It will be possible to make the technology smaller. Current technology proves it, things get smaller and smaller by the minute. But before that we need to make the technology work. And that's difficult in it's own right…'_

"Seto!" someone called, interrupting his thoughts. Knowing that there was only two people who called him that - and one of them most certainly couldn't be found anywhere near his company - Seto sighed. Turning around he saw how Mokuba and Nosaka walked toward him.

"What is it, Mokuba?" he sighed. _'Having a fight with him is not the way I hoped to end this day.'_

"You didn't set a single foot in the mansion the entire weekend," his little brother said with slight frown, folding his hands. Nosaka behind him rolled her eyes and shook her head, looking away, but Mokuba didn't seem to notice. "Have you started to sleep at the office these days?"

Seto blinked with confusion. _'Sleep at the office?'_ he wondered. "I wasn't working if that is what you're asking," he answered slowly.

"Why aren't you staying at the mansion then?" Mokuba asked with narrowed eyes. "Do we really bother you so much that you hide away at some hotel or something? You hate hotels."

When Seto didn't quite know what to say, Nosaka spoke first. "What Mokuba is trying to say is that we feel that you should be staying at the mansion. It is your home," she said softly, glancing at Mokuba who despite shifting with discomfort didn't argue. The woman smiled and looked at Seto apologetically. "It was wrong of us to drive you away."

"You didn't drive me away," Seto said quickly with a frown. For a moment he almost said that he was staying over at Yugi's - and that currently he was quite content staying there, but something stopped him. Despite the frown and the look of annoyance, Mokuba had that look in his eyes. The look he got when he wanted something but didn't dare to ask fearing that Seto would laugh at him or deny him.

"We cannot settle our differences if we continue keeping distance," Nosaka said softly, glancing between the two brothers. "And we are at least trying to make things right between us, aren't we?" she asked it with a quiet, almost pleading tone.

Seto frowned. _'They want me to return to the mansion so that we can make peace huh?'_ he mused. He could almost hear Yugi's voice telling him to give Mokuba a chance. The offer was quite tempting, but… in the last week, he had been so much more comfortable than before. Living with Yugi… had been pleasant.

_'Well, it's not like I won't see him even if I go back to the mansion,'_ he thought, turning his eyes away. _'And everything there is in Yugi's house I have ten fold in the mansion…_' Seto shook his head. "Fine," he finally said, turning his back to the couple. "I'll return to the mansion, if that will make you happy."

Not stopping to listen what the two had to say about it, Seto strode up to his car. As he sat down, he wondered if it was a right decision to make. He and Mokuba had ended up arguing almost every time they had met recently. Living in a same building would probably help them avoid such arguments. While starting the car, his thoughts turned to Yugi. What would his former rival think of this?

x

Humming to himself, Yugi leaned back in his wheelchair while clicking open a webpage. He had already closed the shop and even undressed his prosthetics. While waiting for Seto to come, he had decided to check out the internet for latest rumours of the game world and other stuff that interested him. He couldn't be reliable source of latest gossip to his customers if he didn't know the things people were gossiping about after all.

He chuckled softly. The day had been very busy before he had managed to close the shop. Being the release date of the DC3, he had had almost seventy customers, all who had been after the latest console. On top of the many who had pre-ordered the console there had also been those who hadn't - Yugi had almost ran out of stock of the consoles that hadn't been already booked. He suspected that the next day would be busy as well - only half of those who had booked one had picked their consoles up.

Though he did prefer slow days when he could relax and occasionally sculpture something, busy days were fun too. They reminded him loud and clear why he was keeping the shop open even though it wasn't as popular as most. Also seeing so many game enthusiasts, all after the same thing… it was quite nice. Rewarding. Games had changed since he had been one of those enthusiasts, but games were still popular, there still were enthusiasts around.

_'And as long as there are games to be played and those who love to play them, piece of my other self's soul still remains on this earth,'_ Yugi mused with a smile. _'And his wish shines in the eyes of every player when they devote themselves to a game.'_

Shaking his head he closed his eyes, wondering what his other self would've thought of him if he had been able to see him. In a relationship with their former rival… Jonouchi and Honda probably wouldn't have approved. Anzu and Ryou would've maybe been slightly distrustful. But his other self? _'I think he would've accepted it,'_ Yugi thought with a sad smile. _'My other self was always very accepting. Especially with my likes and dislikes.'_

In the end it didn't matter much, though. Whatever anyone would've thought or said, whatever their opinions about it would've been… Yugi still liked his former rival quite bit. And he just had had one of the possibly greatest weekends of his life with the said former rival.

Not only had Seto taken him out to incredible date on Saturday, but they had spend almost all of Sunday just enjoying each other's presence. While Seto had been working on something on his laptop by the living room table, Yugi had been laying on the couch beside him, reading. And for some reason doing that in his lover's presence, even if the other had been preoccupied with his laptop, had been very nice. Especially when Seto had now and then stopped to think and while he had his hand had came to stroke through Yugi's hair…

It seemed that the longer the man stayed there, the more Yugi enjoyed his presence. Not that he minded it at all.

Opening his eyes, Yugi turned his attention to his computer. Logging into a site where he usually found the latest rumours of gaming world, he noticed that there was a new article on the index page. Scrolling the page down, he leaned forward to read it. "Kaiba Corporation's new super secret project!" proclaimed the title that made him blink sharply and then frown.

_'What is this…?'_ he mused, quickly scanning over the text. _'Limit Breaker? A new game? No wait, what the… sensor that can monitor nerve signals? What the hell, isn't that like medicine related stuff or something…?'_ The article spoke about some chair that seemed to listen to the nerve signals of the one who sat on it. Who ever had written the article pondered what Kaiba Corp was planning to do with such technology - create a game one can actually experience through their very nerves perhaps?

_'Seto hasn't told me about this,'_ Yugi thought, leaning back in his chair. _'This seems a bit… strange for a Kaiba Corporation project. Most things they do revolve around either holograms or robotics…'_ he pursed his lips, giving the article a dirty look. _'Might be that the article is full of crap, though… there is a project Seto hasn't told anything about yet. The project with Mokuba and Miho working in it…'_

Yugi glanced up, hearing the door opening and closing in the shop's side. _'Oh, Seto's home. Maybe I should ask him about this. He should be able to say it's true or false…'_ turning in his chair a bit, Yugi smiled at the taller man as Seto stepped into the back room. "Welcome back," he said. "How did the release go?"

"Smoothly, thank gods," Seto sighed, dropping his briefcase by the door. While Yugi lifted a single eyebrow at the action, the taller man sat down to the seat by Yugi's work table. "My PR department handled the release well without needing to bother me once."

"Well that's good," Yugi said, slightly worried because despite the apparent smoothness of his day, Seto didn't seem happy. "Is something wrong?"

Seto smirked crookedly. "Wrong? Well, not exactly. Maybe," he said with annoyed sigh. "Mokuba and Nosaka want me to return to the mansion. Apparently Nosaka thinks we can't settle our fight unless we play house together," he rolled his eyes.

Yugi blinked slowly. "Oh," he then said, turning his eyes to the monitor to hide his disappointed frown. _'He's… leaving already?'_ he thought sadly. "Are you going to go then?" he asked. "Spending some time together might help you settle the fight. Or at least understand each other's standing in the matter."

Seto sighed. "I already promised I'd return," Seto answered. "You don't… mind, right?"

Quickly bringing a smile to his face, Yugi glanced the taller man over his shoulder. "Not at all. It was a temporary arrangement anyway. A cooling off period for you and Mokuba," he turned his eyes to the monitor again. "It's not like you won't visit later on, right?"

"I will," Seto answered. The silence that followed was little bit awkward and little bit tense before the taller man broke it again. "What are you doing anyway?" he asked, motioning at the computer. "Working on your shop's website?"

"Nah, I already updated the site. I'm reading some rumours," Yugi answered, grinning at the other man over his shoulder. "About your company, actually. It says here you got a super secret project going on."

"I do?" Seto asked with snort.

"Yeah, they called it… um, what was it?" the shopkeeper glanced at the article again. "They called it Limit Breaker in the article."

There was tense silence. "What?" Seto then asked sharply before sitting up and walking over to him. Yugi glanced at him with surprise as he leaned over him to see the screen. Frown appeared to the taller man's forehead. "What the hell? Only the team working on the Limit Breaker should know… Who wrote this?"

"So there is a project called Limit Breaker?" Yugi asked with surprise, turning his eyes to the screen. "I don't know who sent the article. Everyone on this site works under screen names. It's impossible to tell who they are." He glanced at the other man who was reading the article with a dark frown. "You turned very serious all of sudden."

"I just found out that there is an information leak if not an outright spy in my company. Of course I turned serious," Seto muttered with annoyance, reaching for the mouse and clicking the screen name of the person who had written the article. "I specifically told them that they should tell no one… Damn it, who the hell leaked this…?"

"What's the project about?" Yugi asked with a frown. _'It has to be pretty serious to make him this agitated,'_ he thought. "Something important?"

"A private project," Seto said, shaking his head and standing up straighter. "I don't know yet if it will work out the way I want it to… so maybe it's better that I don't tell what it's about."

Yugi blinked. _'Huh…?'_ he leaned back, looking up to the other man before turning his eyes to the screen again. _'He doesn't want to tell me what it's about in case the project is a failure? Though he said private, meaning that it isn't a Kaiba Corp's project - not one that he intends to merchandise I guess…'_ With a thoughtful hum he clicked the internet off. "If it's private, I can understand that you didn't want the information to leak," he said, turning away from the computer. "What are you going to do about the leak?" he asked while Seto leaned onto the computer table.

"Nothing," Seto shook his heard. "It was Nosaka and Mokuba who selected the team therefore Mokuba is the one responsible for the leak. He will have to deal with it." After a moment of thoughtful silence, Seto snorted. "Mokuba is better at dealing with things like these anyway."

"I see," Yugi chuckled, grabbing a hold of Seto's coat's hem and pulling him closer. "So, when are you going to return to the mansion?" he asked, reaching up with his other hand to take hold of Seto's tie. "Do I need to help you pack?"

"Everything I have here I have at the mansion too, so unless my stuff here bothers you…" Seto murmured, bending down obediently as Yugi begun tug him downwards by the tie. "And I don't think I'm in too much of a hurry to return to the mansion…"

"Oh good," Yugi smiled. _'That gives me some time then,'_ he thought while leaning up to claim the taller man's lips. The kiss was sweet even though their angle was a bit awkward, just deep enough to be slightly moist. Rolling the other's taste on his lips while pulling back Yugi hummed. There had been no taste of food in the other's lips. "You haven't eaten anything in a while. Hungry, perhaps?"

"Hmm," Seto hummed in agreement, straightening his back.

Yugi chuckled, releasing his hold of the other's tie and lowering his hands to the handrims. "Let's go upstairs then. I'll feed you."

x

Despite the time he had spent with Yugi, by the time he got to the mansion Seto was rather pissed off. For one, he would've much rather stayed at Yugi's place, where he knew he wouldn't have to deal with Mokuba and Nosaka. And for two, the information leak in the team working with the Limit Breaker… that was a major source for some annoyance.

_'Strange that the article was so poorly informed,'_ Seto mused while parking his car. _'Everyone working on the project know that the Limit Breaker is not a game project, they know what they are creating. Or at least they should. So the leak is either second hand - one of the workers telling something about the project to someone else or… there is a bug in the laboratory or on one of the workers.'_

It was both annoying and relieving. Annoying because since the information was flawed, he couldn't limit the suspects to the Limit Breaker team. Relieving because thanks to the lacking information, Yugi hadn't found out everything about the project. He wasn't entirely sure how he wanted to tell Yugi about the project but he knew that this was not the way. And it was much too early to tell anyway.

Grabbing his briefcase and sitting up from the car, Seto quickly locked it before marching towards the front door of the mansion. He stifled a grimace at the sight of the building. After being away from it for a while the mansion looked even more unwelcoming than before. Especially in comparison to Yugi's cosy little home.

When he opened the door and stepped inside the entrance hall, he wasn't surprised to find that his butler was already hurrying to greet him. Instead of letting the man say anything, Seto spoke first. "Where is my brother?" he asked tightly, giving the hall a look of dislike. _'This place is even more gaudy than I remembered. Why haven't I changed the décor since Gozaburo owned this place…?'_

"He is in the east wing living room, sir," the butler answered. "Do you want me to inform him of your arrival?"

"No, I have something to talk with him about in person," Seto said, walking pass the man. "Take a bottle of brandy to my office, I'll be there in a moment."

"As you wish, sir."

Making his way to the east wing's living room took longer than Seto would've liked. He had almost forgotten how annoyingly big the mansion was. He usually stayed in the west wing where his bedroom, office and his favourite living room were, and he couldn't quite remember when had been the last time he had even stepped foot into the east wing. _'There's only so much space a man needs,'_ Seto mused, remembering what Yugi had once said. _'I wonder what that tells of Gozaburo, since he built this place…'_

Finally he came to the living room. Mokuba and Nosaka were sitting by the fire, quietly talking when Seto opened the door. The two of them started lightly before turning to look at him. "I see you decided to come home," Mokuba said with a frown. "Though it certainly seemed to take you some time."

Seto narrowed his eyes. _'They themselves wanted me here and now Mokuba is unhappy with it? Go figure,'_ he thought. "We have a leak. Someone wrote an article on the internet about the Limit Breaker project," the president of the Kaiba Corporation spoke cuttingly, naming the site. "Since it's you two selected the team, it's your responsibility as well."

"An information leak?" Mokuba asked, leaning his elbow to the backrest of the couch with a frown. The hostile air seemed to fade slightly as he thought about it. "You think it's on the team itself, or…?"

Seto shook his head. "They wrote about the Limit Breaker as if it was a game project, so I'm not sure if it's in the team itself. Might be that someone in the team spoke to someone else - or there is a bug in the laboratory," he raked his eyes over his brother before frowning. "Whatever it is, you will find the leak and deal with it."

"I will," Mokuba nodded before grimacing. "Can I use the testing gear if it gets to that?" he then asked.

"Of course," Seto nodded, turning to leave. "Tomorrow I will start working in the Limit Breaker as well," he said while walking back to the door. "So I will be watching how you handle the situation, Mokuba."

"I'll handle it well, I promise," Mokuba muttered after him.

The elder brother merely nodded and left the two alone. He had no desire to remain in the couple's presence longer than he had to - nor did he want to get into another argument with his little brother. They had had enough of those already.

Not much after Seto was sitting in his office, going through the reports of how the release had went. Since the time difference between countries, he was still getting reports of how the release had gone abroad. Thankfully it seemed like everything had gone without a hitch. After glancing through most of the reports, Seto turned to the report Nosaka had sent of what they had accomplished that day.

_'As I thought. It's better that Mokuba and Nosaka concentrate onto the sensors,'_ Seto mused while reaching for his brandy. Nosaka and Mokuba had been working on making the chair better most of the day and it seemed like Nosaka had almost managed to key the sensors to the right nerve signals. _'They seem to be working well together. With them working on the CNS-receiver, I can concentrate onto the legs themselves… that way we should have the prototype of the technology working quickly enough.'_

Opening the files about what Mokuba and his team had came up with so far for the legs, Seto took a sip of his drink. He chuckled at the sight of the metal 'bone' frame they had sketched up. _'Looks better than I dared to hope. Easy to tell that they have a doctor leading the team. Most engineers wouldn't have gone about the mechanics like this normally…'_

Placing the glass back down, Seto leaned forward and started to add his own modifications to the plans. Soon his mind was working through the possible ways to make the joints work as they should and how to give the different parts the same level of movement as the parts of actual feet had.

The work kept him preoccupied until rather late. After he finished adding his notes and such to the plans, he closed the computer. Leaving the last of the brandy to the table - knowing that someone would pick it up in the morning before he even awoke - he sat up and headed for the nearest bathroom. Once he was done there, he headed for his bedroom, ready to rest for the night. When he was done setting the alarm and placing his clothing aside, he got ready for bed.

When he got underneath the duvet, it didn't take him long to get rather uncomfortable. The bed felt wrong. It was too soft, the sheets were too clean and felt stiff around him. The duvet was too heavy and warm and the pillow was much too thick to feel comfortable. The beddings had been changed recently, and they smelled like… nothing. With annoyance, Seto turned to his side, trying to get into comfortable position. Telling himself that soft, warm bed and clean sheets was good thing, he closed his eyes and tried to sleep.

But even after hour or so laying underneath the too warm covers he was still awake. Much to his own irritation, he found himself staring at his left side. If it had been Yugi's bed, Yugi would've been sleeping there. If it had been Yugi's bed, the sheets would've been soft and maybe a little bit too thin thanks to many years of use. The pillows had been flattened by use as well and the duvets had been rather thin. And even so, the bed had seemed warmer than Seto's own seemed to be.

_'Stupid sentimentality,'_ Seto growled silently at himself, rolling onto his back and brushing his hand through his hair. His body felt tired, but at the same time it wouldn't fall asleep. It didn't want to. _'I was at Yugi's place barely a week and yet…'_

With a heavy sigh Seto glanced at the empty spot beside him. Then he sat up with a growl. _'I wonder if we have any fruits in the kitchen…'_

x

Yugi couldn't sleep. He had been trying to for over an hour but he couldn't put his mind to rest. Nor could he quite close his eyes. Even though the bedroom was dark and he could barely see anything, he kept staring at the empty pillow at his right.

_'The bed feels colder when he's not here,'_ Yugi mused, burying his nose against the pillow. It had taken him a few nights to get adjusted to Seto's presence when he fell asleep - even though Seto was silent, solid sleeper, his breathing wasn't silent. But once he had gotten adjusted to it, it had became something… natural. Something that belonged to his nights. Yugi had even fell asleep once or twice, counting the other man's breathing. Without it the bedroom seemed too quiet.

Yugi sighed sadly. _'I won't have the delight of waking him up tomorrow either. Tomorrow morning is going to suck so bad that there isn't words for it,'_ he thought, his eyes skipping over the empty side of the bed. _'All good things come to an end. Heck, I knew it would too. It was just temporary thing, he was here just so that he and Mokuba could cool off… the mansion is his home. But…'_

He snorted softly. _'Seto would laugh at me if he knew what I'm thinking,'_ he mused with a soft chuckle. _'It's pretty laughable. Here I am, pining after him like some love sick teenager.' _The chuckle faded. _'Can't be helped though. I got used to to his presence already.'_ His ability to adjust to things quickly now seemed to have turned against him.

_'I hope he didn't end up arguing with Mokuba and Miho,'_ he then thought, eying the pillow thoughtfully. _'He should already know that arguing isn't helping them, even if he hasn't yet admitted that their fight is mostly his own fault. I doubt Mokuba really wants to fight with him either - you can't go from the almost idealistic worship Mokuba always held for Seto into complete hate. Even those two can't pull that one off without a serious reason behind it…'_

His line of thought broke momentarily as he yawned. _'Well, now that they're living in same the house again, they should have some sort of chance of making up,'_ he thought, blinking blearily. _'They can't run away from each other as much…'_ rubbing his knuckles over his eyes, he sighed. _'I wonder if Seto has any problems sleeping tonight. I wonder if he got accustomed to sleeping here like I did…'_

After a moment of stillness, Yugi reached his hand out to touch the other pillow. It was no different from his own pillow - same series really. The pillowcase was different though, his was white while the other had a blue pillowcase. But in the end, they were pretty much the same. _'But this is Seto's pillow now.'_

Then Yugi grabbed hold of the pillow and pulled it closer. Burying his nose against it, he sighed. _'I can smell Seto on this…'_ he thought, closing his eyes and breathing in deeply. He smiled sleepily before opening his eyes. With a grin he threw his duvet's aside and moved to the other side of the bed, burying himself under the duvets. _'Mmm, much better.'_ There, surrounded by his lover's scent, Yugi slowly started to drift into slumber.

Meanwhile in his mansion, Seto had sprinkled lemon to his own pillow and had finally been able to fall asleep.

x

Hi. For those who still aren't aware, the last chapter's cut parts can be found in my Yahoo group, link's the "homepage" on my profile. And for those wondering, I intend to finish this story nice and proper - but _it will take time._ I have other stories to write and other interests to indulge in - and a life to life, occasionally. So have some patience. Thank you for your wonderful reviews and see ya around.


	14. XIV chapter

**XIV chapter**

Mokuba tried not to look at his brother, but it was hard. Seto was working across the laboratory, working in that fervent pace that made Seto Kaiba both a miracle and a horror to witness, missing only a storm cloud and random flashes of lightning to complete the image of mad scientist. Within few hours the man had constructed a metallic skeleton for one of the prosthetics out of random parts he had probably collected from the company's many ware houses - and after being in business for so many years, they had enough spare parts to build a small, very high tech city.

After working so intimately in the project himself. Mokuba knew well enough that the feat Seto had just performed under his gaze was nearly impossible. He considered himself somewhat good with his mind and hands and he had certain _familiarity_ with technology, but he still would've needed blue prints, plans and maybe two week's worth of time to complete what Seto had made with only a general concept of human anatomy and some spare parts and only few hours, if even that.

"Despite the fact that the man is such a bastard, it's always a trill to watch him work," one of the technicians helping Miho murmured to another before sharp glance from Mokuba set them back to work. They were right though. Seto, no matter how bad his personality was and no matter how much you hated the man, was incredible to watch when he had time and an idea in his hands. And it wasn't ever a question if he had the parts - he could _make_ the parts in need.

Shaking his head at the thought, Mokuba quickly turned his eyes away. He couldn't help the mixed feelings swirling inside him, however. There was that old pride for having such an older brother - the pride which after seeing miracle after miracle, invention after invention, revolution after revolution, had never really dulled. And then there was that feeling which had perhaps always been there, but which had started rearing its ugly head only after their fray. The feeling of unworthiness.

No matter how he would learn and practice and train his mind, Mokuba knew he would never be even half as good as Seto was on a _bad_ day. As a child he had never minded it - hell, he hadn't even given it a thought - but as an adult…

_'He's still a bastard, though,'_ he thought spitefully and forced away the feeling of guilt with a shake of his head. Instead he turned his eyes to the sensory chair, wishing he could be working with it. He really needed to work, if he wanted the chair to be up and running properly once Seto would actually be finished with the legs. At the pace Seto was going, the chair would be actually falling behind despite having a head start.

"Any luck yet?" he asked from Miho, who was peering into computer screen intently.

"Some, but we've still got a long way to go," she answered, glancing at him before turning back to the computer. She made a haphazard motion towards the screen and the lines bouncing up and down, the nerve signals. "We've managed to isolate the signals for motor functions away from the pain and sensation signals, but it's another thing to figure out which signal belongs to the toes and which to the knee…"

"You can do it," he assured her - and himself - before glancing at Seto, who was welding something across the room. "Just do it quicker."

"Yes, yes," Miho chuckled, following his gaze. "You know, people have been working for decades in order to improve prosthetics, to make them better by adding mechanical functions. Still, the best we've managed so far is a prosthetic arm which sort of can hold things. And here comes your brother, and already has functional toes on his prototype leg. I can only imagine what sort of results he can come up with once we actually have the sensors up and running!"

"Give him a year, and he'll have a fully functional android, with AI and everything," Mokuba muttered bitterly and turned to the sensor chair. Then he paused, as his mind automatically connected Seto, android and the usual function of Kaiba Corporation. "And android which mimics your body movements…" he murmured and snorted. "That would make an interesting battle game."

"That sort of robot would be quite interesting in science as well. Imagine a human shaped human controlled robot in the bottom of the Mariana Trench. Or in the surface of the Moon - or Mars," Miho murmured with all two wonder of someone who was avid followed of scientific advancements.

"Trust me, if Seto will upgrade from prosthetics to full robots, there will be a game-related battle android long before there will be one meant for space exploration," Mokuba snorted. "I mean… he created the hologram technology dozen years ago and still hasn't allowed scientific community to have any. Or any other community except for the gaming community."

"Hmm… I can only shudder at the thought what your brother would've became if he had not been so game oriented," Miho murmured. "If he had been pro military…"

Mokuba merely shook his head at that thought. That had been Gozaburo's thing - and Seto never agreed with their adoptive father with anything, not even posthumously.

"Alright, back to work," Miho said, turning to the poor lab assistant who had been robed to the chair duty when Mokuba had started working with the information leak. "Next, bent your knee - and this time please try to keep rest of your body as relaxed as possible. Don't even move your ankle or toes - and for god's sake, stop squirming like that! If you all tense, all I will get is a blur…"

"I guess I should go back to work too," Mokuba sighed, straightening his back and stretching his arms. "Alright, Murakami, your turn," he called to one of the programmers who had been rushing about, trying to keep up with Seto.

"But I'm helping the Chief -" the man started, motioning towards his boss.

"Like I really need you fussing about, making a mess. Why Mokuba chose you to the team, I have no idea. Go _away_," Seto just snapped without looking up from his welding. Mokuba's grin was a little strained as he motioned the technician to come along.

"You're new here, right?" he asked from the poor, crushed technician who sent a sorrowful look back to the lab while the younger of the Kaiba brothers led him away. Mokuba almost smiled at the poor man. He certainly hadn't been working in Kaiba Corp long enough. Most of their workers knew better than to harbour any sort of affection towards their ice-hearted boss - and this guy was acting like he had a crush. It would've been cute if the man wasn't about to be cut into pieces.

"Yes, sir, started just two months ago," the man answered. "I was working as assistant in lab seven before you and Nosaka-san pulled me into the Limit Breaker project," he added and gave Mokuba a worried glance. "I'm… still not sure why you did that, though."

"You're nurse, right? Or were, anyway, worked on internship in Domino Public Hospital before getting your second degree in programming, right?" Mokuba asked and the man nodded. "We thought it might come in handy, the nurse training, with the project being as it is," he shrugged and motioned the man to a small, nondescript room on the corner of a long, featureless corridor. "So, you've been tested like this before?" he continued to enquire. It was annoying to test nervous people so he tried to usually make sure they were calm before he started.

"No, sir. I, uh…" the man cast a worried look at the machinery waiting for them on a lone table in middle of the room. "Uh, what does this entail, exactly?"

"It's not a big deal, really. I'll just hook up you to the machine. It'll monitor your heart rate, blood pressure, the strain of your muscles and your perspiration rate," Mokuba explained while guiding the man to sit up so that he could start hooking the sensors and electrodes. "Then I will ask you a few questions, first ones to tune the machine just right for you. And after that I will ask about seven, maybe eight questions about the Limit Breaker project. And after that we'll be done."

"Alright," the technician murmured, rolling up his sleeve so that Mokuba could wrap a band around his bicep. "That doesn't sound too bad. I've heard all sort of ghost stories about these tests, and… well, I thought it would be worse."

"The company has tendency of painting scary images," Mokuba grinned. "Comes with working for someone like Kaiba Seto. He's a paranoid bastard if you ever saw one." Most companies had their workers subjugated to health examinations and drug tests and occasional alcohol tests. Their company had their workers sign agreement to the use of lie-detector - not a single person worked in Kaiba Corp that couldn't be forced to the test. Even Mokuba had signed the papers for that. Theirs was a rather suspicious company. _'Not our company,'_ he thought to himself with momentary annoyance. _'His company.'_

"Alright, I think that should do it," Mokuba murmured, and sat down before the monitor, which was placed so that the worker couldn't see it. "I will ask five questions now, simple ones, and you will answer to them honestly. Simple yes or no answer will do. Alright?" he asked and the other nodded. "Good. Now, your name is Murakami Koichi, correct?"

x

Seto frowned slightly at the skeletal frame of the leg. It was _working_ but he was far from being satisfied. Working with spare parts and such, you rarely got the result you were going for and the leg certainly looked like nothing he had imagined. It was too big, too bulky, the movement was jerky at best and it weighted almost fifteen kilograms - and that was without including any sort of power source. It wasn't exactly a perfect prototype of the finished product, but what it was, was a start. It was always easier to hone something to perfection when you actually had something to actually hone.

_'I need to have the parts all made from scratch,'_ he mused while examining the toe movement thoughtfully. _'The metals I've used so far are too heavy. With some fine tuning… I can replace the sinews with wires, that'll be more flexible than the rods I used and the bolts I used are unnecessarily big. As are the screws… There's little I can do about the bone design just now, but some of the general design doesn't have to be metal. Plastic and rubber will work here and there better. So, with proper parts, I should be able to cut the weight by… two thirds. Still too heavy… how much do normal prosthetics weight anyway? Not much, Yugi's legs weight barely a thing…'_

He trailed away, making a mental countdown of the light metals he could use which were also durable. It was a new problem to consider - usually when ever he had to consider what metals to use, it was about heat conductivity or electrical conductivity or how easily it could be repaired or replaced if necessary, not about how much it _weighted_.

"Seto," a voice from behind him interrupted his thoughts, and glancing over his shoulder he saw Mokuba, approaching him with a writing pad.

"Done?" he asked, folding his hands.

"Yep. I've found our instigator too," his brother answered, handing the pad to him. It had a printed form on it, the statistic scored by one of the Limit Breaker worker on the lie test. "I was pretty sure it was him from the start, but I went through everyone just to be sure."

Seto frowned. The lie detector wasn't faultless - he would need to work on that one day - but the results usually were pretty conclusive if you were skilled enough with using it. And Mokuba was nothing if he wasn't a good interrogator. If Seto did the tests personally, they usually showed that every person he questioned was guilty as they had the tendency of being nervous around him. Mokuba, though, was a sneak about it. He lulled the people into complacency before bringing out the big guns and taking them unawares.

"He sort of confessed too," Mokuba said while they moved to the side of the room where they wouldn't be overheard. "He apparently talked to someone during coffee break, about this new project he was assigned too - bragging probably. It might be that the person he talked to was the one to post the info on the internet, or that person talked to someone else. But in any case, it wasn't exactly… deliberate."

Seto gave him a flat look. "Whenever someone opens their mouth, the words that come out are usually more or less intentional. If the person he talked to is one of my workers, test them too," he said, turning to frown at the file. Talk over coffee? Just incredible. He thought he had the habit of hiring intelligent workers, but apparently it wasn't quite so. What was it with people and not understanding the words _classified_ as in _not tell a soul about it_? Blabbering over goddamn coffee… "I'll handle this guy," he sighed, wondering about the form of punishment to give. "You hunt down the one he talked with."

"Alright," Mokuba answered, giving him a frown. "You're gonna fire him, aren't you?" he asked with that disapproving tone that seemed to be his general tone of voice these days.

"No, I'm going to flail him," Seto answered point-blank. "Maybe throw him off the building or have him commit public honour suicide. Why aren't you going yet?"

With a snort, Mokuba turned and stalked off while Seto looked around to find the worker who had leaked the latest secret of his company to the world beyond. "Takeuchi Dai," he called, making the man start and look up. Seto frowned and held the pad up, making the man's shoulder's sag. "Why don't you come with me to a little trip to my office?" Seto asked, a sharp smirk coming to his face. "We have a few things to discuss about your work ethics."

He did fire the man. How Mokuba could think he'd do anything less, he had no idea. When he said not to do something, people usually realised better than to do it - and he had no intention of keeping a man who _bragged_ about secret company projects in a public area where anyone could hear him. It was small mercy that the man hadn't told everything and in the end had only given the impression that the Limit Breaker was a game project, but the man had still talked.

"Just how badly did you threaten him?" Mokuba asked later, as the recently fired worker gathered his things and left, face pale and lips pressed tightly together.

"Well enough to make sure he keeps his mouth shut in the future," Seto answered calmly. It was within his right to make the man's life living hell later on if the man would keep on talking. The man had sighed great many papers when he had been employed and the fine print in Seto's contract tended to be… vicious. Seto had only made sure that the man knew that - and exactly what sort of lengths he could go before anyone would as much as frown at him. That included just about everything below abuse and murder, really.

"I don't see why you want to keep this thing so tightly wrapped up anyway," his brother muttered with a frown. "We're making prosthetic legs, not atomic bombs! If people knew about this charity project of yours, I bet you'd already have buyers lined up if what Miho tells me about prosthetic technology is anywhere near reality. Not just that, but you could maybe even get experts working for the project."

"I don't want them," Seto answered, folding his arms. "And I don't want a word to get out of this project before I know for a fact I can make it happen," he added with a frown of his own. He didn't want Yugi hearing a _whisper_ about the legs he was making before he was absolutely certain Yugi would one day stand on them - hopefully without a cane involved. Absently he rubbed the back of his neck which had felt the brunt of the cane too many times to count. He glanced at his brother. "What are you doing, standing around here for? Don't you have some work you ought to be doing?"

Mokuba rolled his eyes. "Yes sir, Kaiba Seto-sama, sir," he snorted, and handed him the results of another interrogation. "Ichii Aya," he explained. "The person Takeuchi Dai talked over coffee - his girlfriend."

"Oh great," Seto sighed, glancing at the file. Guilty as charged, it seemed. _'So, I'll be firing a young couple, huh?'_ he thought with dismay. _'How utterly romantic.'_ With a disgusted shake of his head, he headed out of the laboratory to find his next ex-worker.

x

Though busy days were always good for the shop, Yugi preferred the slow days when it was near miracle if he got ten customers. He didn't have to be fast then, he could talk with each customer individually and there was no hurry. These sort of days, on other hand, were hard. Not only because he could barely keep up, but because… he could barely keep up.

Despite being the day after the release, somehow the shop was busier than it had been in the previous day. It was, in fact, packed to the gills with people there to get their DC3 consoles. Cursing himself for putting the shipment into the backroom from where he had to get the boxes one by one by himself, Yugi rushed back and forth as fast as he could to meet the demands. His legs were aching and his vest felt itchy with sweat and on top of that he had had a very bad morning due to the lack of his usual morning distraction - that being Seto and the delight of waking him up. On top of that, there was no end in sight with more people coming in and even lining at the door.

"There we go," he said while hoisting one more packet to the counter. "You're Kyo, right? Alright, if you would just sign here… thank you. That will be forty-nine thousand, eight-hundred and nine yen. Oh, the games too. Right then, um…. fifty eight thousand, seven hundred and fifty yen. Would you like these in a bag?"

And so it went, without giving him as much as a chance to sit down or get something to eat or even drink. By the time it was the closing time, he was tired and little annoyed and more than happy to snap the front door shut with a decisive click of the lock. It had been a good day financially; he had sold more than thirty games and forty nine consoles - and two DS2. But gods he was glad it wasn't a console release date everyday. He was so worn that he didn't even bother to glance the shop to see if it needed cleaning or organising, he just headed up stairs as soon as he could and collapsed to the living room couch where he hurriedly wormed out of his leather pants and wiggled the prosthetics off.

"Aah, that's so much better," he sighed with relief, falling to lie on his back while idly scratching the shorter of his two stumps. _'Now if only I would never have to move again or pull those goddamned things on, I'd be very happy…'_ he thought, rubbing his palm over the stump one more time before relaxing on the couch. _'Hm… I wonder if Seto will visit today…'_

The thought trailed away and he sighed. It had been miserable to wake up without his lover there. Waking Seto had become the highlight of his day. It had been such a good way to start the day in so many ways, as it not only gave him something to do in the quiet hours, but it also gave him the privilege of watching the man as he walked around in a daze, half naked and just _delicious_ to watch. And of course it was so nice to wake up next to someone, or, better yet, in their arms…

_'I wonder how his morning went,'_ he thought to himself while situating the cushions a little better behind his neck. _'He has servants and all to make sure he wakes up nice and proper and gets everything done before heading off, so he probably managed, but still… and with Mokuba and Miho there, it might've been a little awkward. Unless they're both holed up in different wings of the mansion or something. Knowing Seto, they probably are…'_

He spent a moment thinking about Mokuba and Seto skirting around each other and walking on eggshells, and chuckled. As bothersome as it was not to have the man around, he hoped that the brothers would soon settle their differences. Seto might've not seen it like that, but it was causing him some pain not to be in good terms with his brother - the only family he had. _'Poor Miho, being caught in middle of their fight,'_ he mused. _'Though considering that she broke into the company and marched into Seto's office like it was nothing, she probably can handle it.'_

Odd thing was; he felt actually a little jealous. He wasn't sure if he was jealous of Seto or Miho or Mokuba, but he was. He had only Seto and their relationship was still young and fresh and a little awkward. Who knew how many people Mokuba and Miho had, aside from those working with them. To be surrounded by people… it would probably be awkward for Yugi nowadays after he got adjusted to being by himself all the time, but still… it would've been nice…

He sighed and reaching for the CD player's remote control. Turning it on and setting it to replay, he leaned back down again. It was moments like these he missed his friends the most. He missed _talking_ with people mostly. It would've been so nice to just call to Anzu to whine about the hard day at work, or call to Jonouchi and just ask how he was doing, how was Mai, how were the kids… Or Honda, or Otogi. But the last person he did call these days was Ryou and the phone bill screamed every time he did, which wasn't often. And Ryou was busy with work and his daughter and so forth…

Closing his eyes, Yugi allowed the thought to fade. It was no use being all bitter about it. Things changed and he ought to know how to accept his life as it was by now. Besides, he had Seto now. He had no reason to be bitter anymore.

He turned to his side and nestled a little better into the couch. He was tired; it had been a long day after a bad morning and even a worse night. He could use a nap. Yawning, he laid his head down again and drifted off.

x

Seto leaned back, examining the result of his work. The legs were both as done as he could make them at this point. It had taken whole day - far too longer than he had expected it to, really - but they were done. The second one had been easy to do after the first was done, as he had done the right one first. The left leg was shorter and after figuring out the work process with the right leg, the leg left had just about copying a mirror reflection, really. Now all was left was for Miho and Mokuba to get the sensors up and running properly and they would finally see if they got the goddamned things actually working, and whether or not they could actually make the plans into reality.

He glanced at the sensor chair. It was a _bit_ smaller than in the beginning, but it was still a chair. So as far as that went, he wasn't yet too hopeful. What he had in mind was a small sensor in the back of one's neck that would enable the control of the legs. The sensors right now were miles off from that dream and no matter how good the legs came out, they'd be next to useless if the could be only controlled in a chair.

_'Once they actually have the sensors working, we can start the real programming,'_ he mused. _'And once that is done, then will come the fine tuning. Whole lot of fine tuning.'_ The sensors needed to be tuned, the programming would take forever to make and they had next to nothing to work from and finally, once those two would be done, they would need to make the robotics... smoother so that it would all work in one neat packet. _'It will take months,'_ he thought with dismay while running his hand over a metallic _bone_ of the left leg. _'And it will take years to perfect this technology.'_ But as long as he would one day see Yugi standing, walking, maybe even running... it would be worth it.

_'Being in a relationship has turned me into a complete sap. I blame him,'_ the Kaiba Corp CEO thought, glancing at near by clock. It was already seven pm. He sighed. It was too late to visit Yugi and make the visit enjoyable - it would have to be cut too short and he didn't care for that. _'Why did I agree to return back to the mansion again?'_

"I think we've done about much as we can today," Nosaka was saying across the room. "Let's wrap it up for the night, people. We can continue in the morning when we're rested and ready to work."

As people started pushing their chairs back and gathering their tools into neater piles, Seto rubbed his neck with a grimace. He could do with one of Yugi's excellent massages just about then. Or maybe just bed and chance for goodnight's sleep. Preferably both. At the same time. And in some other bed than his own. _'How I could sleep in that thing before, I have no idea. Too soft.'_

"Incredible," the project manager herself said while walking closer to inspect his handiwork. "You really are a genius, aren't you, Kaiba Seto?"

"What do you want?" Seto asked without paying any attention to the attempt of praise. Facts weren't complimentary.

She didn't answer at first, instead spent a moment examining the legs. "Really incredible work," she muttered, tracing her hand down across the knee of the right leg. "Why did you make the left leg shorter? Not that there's anything wrong with it - below knee amputations are just as common as above knee amputations after all, but I'm curious…"

"I wanted to figure out how to manage the ankle movement without the knee joint," Seto lied, giving her a look. "You've hovered about me half a day watching, so you haven't missed a thing I've done. What do you _want_, woman?

"World peace and good will to all mankind," she answered in light tone. "Though I'll settle peace between you and Mokuba, for now. And I was thinking that we could go out to get something to eat. Mokuba, you and I, I mean," she said, glancing at Seto's brother who folded his hands with a huff and looked away. "Maybe we could... try having a civil conversation while we were at it?" she added before sighing at the flat look he gave her. "Am I the only one trying here?" she asked, glancing between Seto and Mokuba. "Come on, guys, I can't do this alone."

"Hey, I didn't say anything," Mokuba said, holding his hands up in surrender. Judging by the look she gave him, he actually had said something, just doing out of the reach of Seto's ears.

"Fine," the elder man answered. It had been long and annoying day and would continue to no doubt even longer and more annoying night, but he could use something to eat. "Let's go and eat, whatever," he said, standing up and shrugging his shoulders to try and alleviate the tenseness there. "I'm picking the restaurant, though. I'm not having Italian."

"What's wrong with Italian? They make the best food in the world, you know," Mokuba answered indignantly.

"I don't feel like it, that is what's wrong with it," Seto snapped back irritably. He had no intention of going to the same restaurant they had once gone - Mokuba's favourite. Those were good memories he wasn't about to let their fight ruin. "Beggars can't be choosers, brat. So deal with it."

"Like you'd know anything about beg -" Mokuba started and stopped at the cold stare Seto gave him. He got awkward look about him and coughing turned around. "Fine then. The French place then? They always have table open for you, don't they?"

"It'll do," Seto answered, not feeling like starting a fight over that particular restaurant. They had usually gone there when they needed certain things or were in certain not-too-polite mood, so it wasn't exactly a place of peace and serenity for them. Pushing the thought aside, he rubbed his hand over his neck final time before looking over the laboratory. The remaining workers were hurrying out and soon the laboratory was empty except for the three of them. "Alright," the CEO said. "Let's lock this place up."

After visiting his office and having a word with his new secretary to make sure that no one would get any brilliant notions without him around to keep an eye on them, he, Mokuba and Nosaka headed out of the company building. Seto admitted that the dinner wasn't a bad idea - not that it was a good one either, considering their frame of mind - but he still wasn't quite willing to lay down all his shields. So instead of accepting Nosaka's offer, he drove on his own car.

He could tell when they arrived at the five star restaurant, that it hadn't been what Nosaka had had in mind when she had proposed her dinner plans to Mokuba. The restaurant was beyond classy and beyond expensive - and Seto suddenly was rather certain he was going to pay for their dinner. It was not what you could call casual diner. It was also as close to formal as you could get without actually having it compulsory to wear suits and dress gowns and such.

"Oh. Oh my," Nosaka murmured as they eyed the restaurant's front. She ran her had through her hair, looking a little awkward. "I might be a little underdressed for place like this."

"You could be wearing a garbage bag and they wouldn't say a thing about it," Mokuba snorted. "Not when you accompany Kaiba Seto."

Seto nodded in agreement - except he would never commit himself to that. This was a place where rumours were born and usually he visited it only when he wanted his business in the papers. He had official dinners of the more official here sometimes - when it profited him to be visible - and back when both he and Mokuba had been bachelors they had occasionally frequented the place just for the reputation - their reputation, given to them by the reporters that frequented the place for the people hat visited the restaurant. Being the most eligible of Domino did wonders for sales, sometimes.

Except they weren't anymore. Which, despite the sales he would lose, wasn't such a bad thing.

"Come on," he said and led the two to the front door. The man who took their coats immediately called for a waitress who was more than happy to lead Seto and his companions to his usual table by a window. As Mokuba sat down as if he owned the restaurant and Nosaka, despite her usual strong will and no-nonsense attitude, tried to not look like she had just spend entire day in windowless laboratory, Seto ordered them refreshments and such to keep them satisfied while they selected their food from the menu.

"You two, uh... did you visit this place often?" Nosaka asked in awkward attempt to start a conversation.

"When ever it was useful," Seto answered, gaining a curious look from Mokuba. "When ever we wanted our faces in the paper."

"This is a vulture's nest, Miho," Mokuba explained and nodded at a table not far from them. "See that woman there, wearing the fur? She's reporter for the _Sundays_."

"That gossip rag?" the woman asked curiously, glancing at the middle aged woman in somewhat classy dress who has a fur vest casually slung about her shoulders. "Wow. She comes here often?"

"She frequents here as occupation, actually. The paper pays her meals and she pays the paper by writing her column. It's pretty popular, even if... well, anyway. That one there, the man in blue suit, next to the window, with that woman with feathers in her hair?" Mokuba continued, nodding at another table. "He's her photographer. And that woman he's sitting with, she's reporter from the _Domino Daily_."

"What are they here for?" Nosaka asked under her breath, looking curious.

"Before we came in? That man," Seto answered for Mokuba, eying one table where rather round man with horrible haircut was deep in conversation with a pretty blonde woman. It was a well known politician, not for his political talents but for his many affairs. "The gossip king. However, now that we're here..." he gave the photographer and the Domino Daily reporter a nasty look as he saw one of them try and take a sneaky picture of them.

Mokuba grinned. "Smile, Miho, you're gonna be in the papers tomorrow, probably."

"Oh god," she muttered, looking away. "Me? But I'm a... nobody."

"You're the fiancée of my brother," Seto rolled his eyes. "By the time tomorrow, everyone's going to know that you're certainly a somebody."

Mokuba and Miho both gave him a mildly surprised look. "Ah, right," Nosaka then said, in oddly quiet and contemplative tone all of sudden. "And this..." she glanced at the reporters. "This is normal for you two?"

"More or less," Mokuba snorted, glancing at Seto with odd look about his face. "You're gonna have to get adjusted to it. I'm not as popular as Seto, but I'm still... somewhat well known. And somewhat popular."

"He's been kidnapped eight times," Seto added, much to Nosaka's horror and Mokuba's outrage. He smirked at the two of them. "Only three of those times they asked for ransom. I think that constitutes being popular."

"Eight times?" Nosaka asked faintly. "R-really?"

"Screw you, Seto," Mokuba growled. "You didn't have to tell her that! Besides it was long ago, stuff like that doesn't happen to me anymore."

"True, the last time was almost six years ago," Seto agreed, smirking wider despite his upcoming headache. He had almost forgotten how much fun it could be to try and get rise out of Mokuba - when there were no hurtful comments or lot of yelling involved. "It was that _lovely_ pair of women who took you the last time, wasn't it?" his smirk widened. "The one with the wig and the other with the…" he made a gesture.

Mokuba growled, flushing a little. "Shut up!"

"Women?" Nosaka asked, leaning forward. She glanced at Mokuba somewhat slyly and then grinned at Seto - actually _grinned_ at him. "Do tell me more."

"Don't you dare, Seto. Don't you -"

He really should've known by now that Seto did indeed dare.

x

"I think we have a breakthrough!" Miho said happily as she and Mokuba made themselves comfortable in the living room near to their chosen bedroom at the Kaiba mansion. "Your brother was actually acting decent - and despite all the growling and posturing, you had fun too! Oh, this is so great. I feel like we're _finally_ getting somewhere. He even called me your fiancée, _his brother's fiancée_! If that's not a success, I don't know what is!"

Mokuba grumbled to himself. "Success my pasty white bottom. He spent the whole dinner making an ass out of me," he muttered while casually reaching down and pulling his lover's ankles to his lap. "Telling all those stories - I'm gonna wring his neck one day, I really am."

"Oh, lighten up. It was such a _big brother_ thing to do, embarrassing the little brother in front of his girlfriend," Miho chuckled, wiggling her toes as Mokuba pulled her socks off. "And it wasn't as much embarrassing as it was amusing. Did those things really happen to you?"

"It's not my fault people are insane. I think it has something to do with Seto - if there is plague that makes people crazy, Seto's the carrier," Mokuba grumbled while idly rubbing the woman's feet in a way he knew she liked. "Somehow he's always been surrounded by loonies. You should've seen us back ten years ago, during the whole card game hullabaloo. Half of the people we knew would've rightfully belonged in a nuthouse."

Miho chuckled. "You've led such interesting lives, both of you," she murmured, closing her eyes. "I remember seeing you on the papers and television - and that whole tournament thing that took place in Domino, they wouldn't shut up about it for weeks!" she shook her head in amazement. "Really, really interesting lives."

"Hmm... maybe," Mokuba admitted. It had been interesting. And, in a way, a bit scary too. Seto had been... different back then. Things had been different, too, but for years Mokuba had been thanking his lucky stars that his brother had stopped being so... obsessed. Yeah, that was the word. Obsessed with beating one Mutou Yugi. _'Wonder what had happened to that guy anyway? Probably touring the world somewhere, still playing card games…'_

He shook his head "There were times that I hope I never forget and we saw stuff most people don't even dream off, during that time," he said, thinking back to some of the good times. Those silly card games had somehow even taken them to Egypt; those had been sights worth seeing. "But... I'm glad it's all behind us," he admitted.

"I imagine I would too, if I was abducted as many times as you were," Miho said a little teasingly and then let out a shriek of laugher as he retaliated by attacking an especially tender spot on the sole of her foot. "Alright, alright, I'm sorry!" she laughed, trying to wiggle out of his grasp. "I suppose it wasn't all that fun at the time," she gasped.

"Not really, no," Mokuba snorted, thinking back to when he had been twelve and the world had been tilted from side to side by bits of gold and purple shadows and flickering spirits. How he had come out of those times sane was anyone's guess. Heck, how _anyone_ had came out of those times sane was half a miracle. _'Best not to tell about that aspect of it to Miho, though,'_ he mused, patting her foot as apology for tickling it. _'Miho's an open minded woman and I love her for that, but I doubt that stretches to magic and spirits and whatnot.'_

"Well, lets not talk about that, then," she said as if sensing his thoughts and unease towards the subject. "There are too many bad memories in this house to dig up even more. So, tell me. Do you think you can make up with your brother now that he's trying?"

Mokuba sighed. He would've preferred to bury the subject. "I guess I have to try," he said, leaning his head back and staring up the ceiling. He did want to try, of course he did. But it was just... darn difficult. Seto just rubbed him the wrong way these days and he couldn't figure out why that was, exactly. Except of course he knew, and that made it all the more troublesome. "It's just... I feel like I don't know him anymore," he murmured. "Where he went before we asked him to come back, why he's making prosthetic legs of all things... I don't _get it_."

"And that bothers you," Miho nodded in understanding.

"It pisses me off," he agreed, frowning. Seto was keeping secrets from him and it annoyed him. There had never been secrets between them before. But then, before, there hadn't been enough space between them for secrets. _'And it's not like I haven't been doing things he knows nothing about,'_ he admitted, thinking to the marriage plans. If he hadn't accidentally called Seto, if Miho hadn't gotten her whim of making them friends again, Seto would've only found out after the fact, probably.

"Give him time. He opened up a little today. Maybe soon he will open up rest of the way and he will tell you," Miho said, nudging his hand with her toes compassionately. "Little by little, things will go back to the way they were."

"No, they won't," Mokuba answered, and gave her a smile.

"Well. One can be hopeful and say that things will get _better_ but lets not hold our hands up and expect the stars to fall onto our palms, not just yet," she answered. "At this point I will happily settle for as-good-as."

"I won't," Mokuba answered, and after giving it a moment of thought. "And neither will he." Because Seto didn't _settle_ and if he was looking to settle, he wouldn't have given Miho a single moment of his time. No, the woman had been right about that. Seto was trying. But with Seto, trying was never just trying.

She smiled widely. "See? You know him a little at least," she said, sounding deeply satisfied.

"Who he knows?" voice interrupted them, and glancing over the couch's backrest, they saw Seto walking in. Mokuba frowned. His brother was wearing coat - and he looked very annoyed. His hair was a mess too, which was pretty odd considering how impeccable Seto usually had to be.

"I know you," the black haired man answered.

"I certainly hope so," Seto snorted. "Comfy?" he asked with crooked smirk, seeing their casual position.

"Just lovely, thanks," Miho smiled, but her eyes were a little worried. "You, uh... you going somewhere?"

"Yes," he answered, straightening his coat. "I thought it would be _polite_ in the spirit of this whole _playing house_ thing that I would inform you before I left. Wouldn't want you to worry after me," he added, sounding like the words were pulling his tongue to knots. "Well then," he said, and turned to leave.

"Wait. Where are you going?" Mokuba asked after the words registered, shifting a little so that he could follow his brother with his eyes.

"I can't sleep here, so I'm going home," Seto answered while starting to walk away. "I'll see you two tomorrow," he said with a final wave, and left mystified Mokuba and Miho staring after him.

"I thought he lived here," Miho said after a moment.

"Me too," Mokuba muttered. Had Seto bought a new place while he had been away or was he missing something?

x

"Scoot over. You're on my side of the bed," Seto's voice roused Yugi from his uneasy sleep, making the shorter man blink with confusion. For a moment he was sure he had dreamt the voice, but then insistent hand pushed at his shoulder. "Move over."

"Seto?" Yugi asked blearily, glancing over his shoulder, only to yelp when a push turned to a shove and he found himself laying flat on his stomach. Spluttering with surprise, he turned to his other side and stared at his lover wide eyed as Seto slipped into the bed, looking smug. "Seto," the shorter male said, blinking as the reality slowly made itself clear again. "What are you doing here?"

"Couldn't sleep," the man answered, shifting into comfortable position and facing him. "You don't mind, right?"

"Of course not," Yugi answered and bit back the more embarrassing words that wanted to make themselves heard. He couldn't but flush a little at the thought that Seto had found him curled on his side of the bed, though. He'd been acting like some sort of lovesick teenager. How embarrassing. "Of course not," he repeated and shifted a little closer to the other. Embarrassing or not, he really had missed the other's scent. "I couldn't really sleep either."

"Hmm," Seto answered and leaned forward. Yugi grinned sleepily as the taller man breathed him in and sighed into his hair, warm breath spreading along the roots of Yugi's hair. "Sorry I didn't stop by today. Busy day at work."

"I had shop full today too. Conked out the moment I came upstairs," Yugi answered and threw his arm around the other. "Mmm, better," he murmured pressing his palm against the other's bare back and rubbing it up and down. After a moment, he shifted closer until he was pressed against the other's chest, loving the fact that Seto never wore a shirt in bed. "Much, much better."

"Yes," the other sighed, relaxing against him. "You don't mind if I stay a little longer?"

"I'll mind if you don't," Yugi answered, closing his eyes. He wouldn't have minded staying up a little longer, but Seto was there and warm and present and he was dead tired… He yawned, nuzzling into the other's chest. So, so _comfy_… "Stay forever if that suits you. I certainly wouldn't mind at all…"

"Forever, huh?" Seto asked. He might've said something else, but Yugi was already drifting away, carried by the steady beat of the other's heart, the warm breath in his hair and the feeling of everything being right in the world again.

x

I'm still kind of trying to figure out what was it about this chapter that was so difficult, that it took me over an year to figure out how to write. And trust me, I tried, oh, I tried to write this over and over and... over again. Only managed it yesterday. Why won't my mind work the way I want it to? It's my mind, it should do what I ask, but noo... let's go frolicking around other fandoms for over an year, why don't we? Anyway, I hope it doesn't dissapoint you guys, after having to wait for so long. I do have pretty clear idea for the next chapter though, so hopefully... it won't take so long to push out.

My apologies for possible grammar errors and such. My excuse is being Finnish and beta-intolerant. If you notice any that bother you, tell me and I will fix them.


	15. Morning Interlude

** Morning interlude**

Yugi stared at Seto's sleeping profile in odd, happy daze while gently brushing his hand up and down along the man's chest. He had thought for a moment that the night's encounter had been a dream, but there the man was, in his bed once more. As he should, said a certain part of his mind which had started to learn the trick of being possessive, though he tried not to listen to that part of that mind. Even if sounded so right.

_'I think I love this man,'_ he thought to himself, running his hand up and down again across the smooth, sleep-warmed skin. It wasn't that much of a shock, though. He had never particularly disliked Seto Kaiba - and had liked him more than liking usually goes on more than one occasion. And with this relationship and being close stuff, well… it was inevitable more ways than one. He hadn't expected it to happen so soon, but Seto and him… they matched so well that it was impossible for him _not_ to love the man. And he did. He really, really did.

_'Where are the fanfares and mood lighting and flickering shadows - tilted angles and all - and the dramatic wind that always happens when someone confesses their love to another in movies and such?'_ he wondered with a quiet chuckle while shifting closer and pressing his cheek against his lover's bare shoulder. Then, after a moment of thought, he pressed his lips against it as well. The feeling was so nice that he had to do it again, and again until he found himself making his way up to the other man's neck and towards his ear.

"Goddamnit, Yugi…" Seto mumbled sleepily, trying to shift away from him. Yugi chuckled again and threw his arm around the man to keep him from escaping. Then, with the other so secured, he pressed his lips against the back of Seto's ear. The man shuddered. "Yugi, what are you - ugh, stop that!" he snapped, trying to wiggle out of his hold. Yugi withdrew a little and gave the man a cheeky grin, which Seto answered with flat stare. "Feeling friendly this morning, huh?"

"Mmm, absolutely," Yugi answered lifting his hand to the other's face and stroking it up to the man's hair, which was falling to his eyes. "I did sort of miss this."

"Bothering me?" Seto asked with a soft growl.

"Yes. And, uh. You, in general," Yugi grinned, shifting closer for a kiss.

Seto immediately drew back, pressing his hand against Yugi's chest to keep him at bay. "Morning breath," the man complained.

"You are so overly romantic that I just might die from the sheer force of your incredible wooing methods," Yugi laughed, and pushed closer regardless. "Suck it up, you big baby. I'm going to kiss you and there is nothing you can do about it."

"I can shove you off the bed -" Seto started and stopped as Yugi smothered the words under his lips. The shorter man grinned widely as the other's struggles seemed to halt immediately and after a deep inhale and quick sigh, Seto kissed back. After a moment, he even wrapped his arms around Yugi and pulled him closer.

"Your ways of shoving me off the bed are very pleasant," Yugi murmured as he broke away to give the other some room to breath. He wormed his free hand around the others neck and played gently with his lover's hair. "Please do that again."

"You are such high maintenance," Seto grumbled with a crooked smirk and pulled him closer again. "Wasting my precious time. Time is money, you know."

"Good thing you're rich, then," Yugi grinned cheekily and together they wasted some more time on each other's lips, before pulling back somewhat reluctantly. "I would love to continue, but you're right, we both have work sometime soon, I think," Yugi murmured, pressing a peck on the other's cheek. "And I wanted to ask you something."

"Mh-hm," Seto nodded, glancing at the alarm clock before turning his eyes to him. "Ask away."

"Did you really come here just to sleep or did you and Mokuba have another fight?"

Seto chuckled, hand tracing up along Yugi's spine. "Actually, we got along rather well yesterday," he said. "Better than. We even went out to eat, him, Nosaka and I. Had a very lovely bonding over dinner," he rolled his eyes and Yugi grinned at the way he twisted the words. The taller man shrugged and smiled faintly. "I admit, it was almost pleasant. Mokuba might never forgive me, though."

"Um, why not?" Yugi asked worriedly.

"I spent most of the dinner making fun of him in front of Nosaka. I, ah, retold some of the many Mokuba-related stories that have piled up over the years. She was very amused. He wasn't," Seto said and smirked. "It was entertaining watching him seethe."

Yugi blinked with surprise and then smiled. "That sounds good," he said, honestly glad. It seemed that Seto was finally warming up to his brother and his fiancée, and making some effort to get along. And even without much prompting this time, which was definitely good. "But if you had such good time with them, why did you come back here in the middle of the night?"

"I told you, couldn't sleep," Seto answered, frowning slightly. "You said you didn't mind."

"Of course I don't mind," Yugi murmured and smiled, relieved that there was no new grudges or sources of stress in his lover's life. He already had too many of them. Humming in enjoyment as the other's fingers reached to play with his hair, he leaned his chin to the lover's chest. "I love to have you here."

Seto blinked and raised his eyebrows at the words. "Really?"

"Absolutely," Yugi answered, closing his eyes contently. Seto was going to be late from work if this kept on, not that he was complaining. He was so very comfortable…

"Then you..." the words trailed away, making Yugi peek one eye open. Seto was frowning at him, looking way too serious for someone with such a bed head. "You wouldn't mind if this would, um... become a permanent arrangement?"

The smaller man blinked and then opened his eyes fully as the words registered completely. He quickly lifted himself up to one elbow to see the other's expression completely. "You... you wanna move in with me?" he asked, just to be sure. Seto answered the question with an oddly cautious look and slow nod. "As in... _really_? Here? But... isn't this place too small for your tastes?"

"I thought so too, in the beginning, but... I'm comfortable here," the other answered and then, after swallowing and steeling himself, he continued. "I'd of course take part in any sort of expenses you have here. If there's rent or something involved, I'll pay half - same with water and electricity bills, and the like. Food too, and what not. That is..." he stopped suddenly. "Unless you don't -"

Yugi cut him off by pressing closer and kissing him half senseless, throwing so much emotion into the kiss that it left him breathless as well. "Yes. Of course. Yes," he said a little stupidly, and grinned. "Of _course_." He repeated because three agreements just wasn't enough. "Absolutely." Or four.

"Oh. Yes, uh... good," Seto murmured, looking him with something between relief and bewilderment. "That's good."

"Yep," Yugi nodded fervently and kissed the man again. He pulled back, grinning. This was going to be _so_ awesome. "So, we need to get you your own closet, of course, as you need to bring your clothes and stuff here. And hmm... one of the empty rooms can be turned into office for you, if you need one. Maybe my old bedroom or the other one, or both. I don't use those rooms for much anyway; they're mostly filled with boxes gathering dust. It's about time I got rid of them anyway, and -"

This time it was Seto who cut him off by kissing him. "Good," he just said, despite the deeply satisfied look about his eyes. "But now I need to get ready for work."

"Hmm… yeah," Yugi murmured, a little disappointedly, and then frowned. "And I haven't even made you anything to eat - oh, and do you have anything to wear, I mean, usually I iron your suit and -"

"Its fine," Seto assured while sitting up. "I'm going to the lab, so I don't need a suit, and I can just grab something to eat from the company cafeteria. My schedule's not so hectic now that I'm working with the Limit Breaker."

"Oh?" Yugi asked curiously, sitting up as well and stretching his hands. "What is that project about anyway?"

Seto hesitated and glanced at him over his shoulder. Then he smirked crookedly and shrugged his shoulders. "If it works out the way I want it to, I'll show you."

xx

Merry christmas! Sorry, not a real update, just little piece, but I love this story too much not to acknowledge it, so... Christmas interlude! This story is not abandoned, just... I haven't had the inspiration for Yugioh in a long while. Hopefully it will swing back to me at some point. I really want to see this story finished, but if I start forcing it, it will come out forced, so...

My apologies possible grammar errors.


End file.
